Inspiration to bring out an English version of “SAHAJ

SADHAN”, originally written in Bengali, came from Sri Sri Guru

Janardan Paramahansa. Earlier the book was translated in Hindi
and got wide acclamation. The English edition — THE SIMPLE
WAY — I hope will remove a long-felt want of the non-Bengali
and non- Hindi speaking disciples and devotees of Guruji to
some extent.
The task of translating and compiling such a highly
philosophical work cannot be easy, especially when equivalent
words and expressions are very difficult to find in any Western
language. There may be some minor variations here and there
which, I hope, the readers will generously accommodate.
THE SIMPLE WAY, I trust, will help guide the people who
have an yearning to know the things which are commonly
unknown but widely believed to be known. A little introspection
reveals to us the amount of ignorance we possess and brings out
the false pride of which we are generally contained.

The soul is alone the perceiver and revealer of truth. We

know truth when we see it — let sceptic and scoffer say what they
choose. Most people will ask : “How do you know it is truth and
not an error of your own ?" We know when we are awake that we
are awake. It is a grand sentence of Emanuel Swedenborg which
alone indicates the greatness of his perception : “It is no proof of a
man's understanding to be able to affirm whatever he pleases but
to be able to discern that what is true is true and that what is false
is false and this is the mark and character of intelligence.”
With common sense one can understand only the
common material objects but one has to cultivate his intelligence
to understand and know things which are non-material and
spiritual. THE SIMPLE WAY, which mainly contains “Questions”
and “Answers" will help the readers to develop their intelligence
in the proper way to realize the “form” of Truth and reform their
way of thinking.
Celibacy (Brahmacharya) is not self-denial but an
essential ingredient to lead a healthy and fruitful life. It should be
practised from childhood which lays the foundation of strong
moral character and invokes enough self-confidence to fight the
battles of life in every sphere. Similarly food is the need of the
body, not of mind, which usually generates greed. One should be
discreet in selecting food and try to avoid the stuffs which beget
reactions.
All the cultures of the world preach one religion, one
philosophy and one doctrine and that is “to know oneself". Self-
realization, it is said, is the only prerequisite for individual
happiness and peace. THE SIMPLE WAY has analysed the
“Self" threadbare and will help the reader to understand his “Self”
in a very simple way.
Being a combination of body and soul, of inspiration and
expiration, man has forgotten the fundamental principle
(ingredient) of the creation. He has been disillusioned by one of
the forces and, therefore, has thus engaged himself in self-
annihilation. Perhaps the seers and sages of India did know this
fact and therefore evolved aprocess to harmonize the two
opposing forces, namely, inspiration and expiration, to save him
from utter distruction. The play of these two opposing forces was
primarily visualized by the Rishis of India in man’s breathing. The
constant process of inspiration and expiration of breath kepi
them engaged in studying and thoroughly analysing it. In
breathing they found that we inhale and exhale some air. They
also observed that the process of attraction (inspiration) and
repulsion (expiration) keeps the man alive. With inspiration and
expiration, the seers found, emanate sounds. The analysis of
breath reveals that when an individual inhales and exhales air by
month two sounds — Aa and Ha are produced and when the
same process is repeated through the nose the sounds Ham and
Hum are produced, respectively. The sounds thus produced are
not peculiar to man but are universal. THE SIMPLE WAY has
elaborately defined these sounds to make it explicitly understood
by a common man. The reader, I trust, will realize the reality of the
song of breath with lesser difficulty.
We express our thoughts in language but we also use the
same to suppress and misrepresent our thoughts. The utility and
futility of language have been critically examined in THE SIMPLE
WAY. It has been proved that the language can never help a man
to understand the objects he desires. There is every chance of
being misled, miscomprehended and misunderstood. Language
cannot help realize the Truth. The chapters dealing with
language need very careful reading. I believe the reader will feel
himself extremely benefitted by the “Questions” and “Answers”
on the language and get sufficiently enlightened.
Mantra is that which by being known leaves nothing more
to know or one can understand through Mantra which a soul can
yearn to know. The Mantra can alone reveal to us the Swaroop of
truth and the secrecy of the creation. There are two parts of the
Mantra — one is Initiation Mantra and the other is Mool Mantra.
The book has explained in detail the role and importance played
by the Mantra in the search of “self” and truth. The readers, I hope
will find the chapters on Mantra very helpful in their efforts to
understand the process of “self-seeking” and search for truth.
Lastly, I express my gratitude to the lotus feet of Sri Sri
Guru Janardan Paramahansa to command me to compile THE
SIMPLE WAY. I know it fully well that there are many who could
have done better justice to the task. Whatever little I have been
able to do, is only due to the blessings of Guruji. Therefore, I
deserve nothing. JAI GURU.

Lachmanjhula
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

With blessings of Sri Sri Guru Janardan Paramahansa, I have

been able to publish “THE SIMPLE WAY”, English version of
“SAHAJ SADHAN— Part I”. I am sure the book will go a long way
to help understand the disciples and devotees of Guruji the basic
philosophy of Sri Sri Guru Purnananda Paramahansa.
Shri Gopal Krishna Kapoor of Kanpur took the responsibility of
printing the book. I am thankful to him for executing the task to
our full satisfaction.
Shri Kailash Chandra Khandelwal and Shri Anil Chandra
Khandelwal of Naini Tal have made available the photographs of
Guruji printed in this book. Shri Murlidhar of Kanpur has supplied
one of the rare photographs of Guruji. Shri Krishna Murari
Khandelwal of Kanpur has arranged the photograph of Shri
Dhrubabananda Swami. I am grateful to all of them.
Editing, revising, production and proof correction of the book
were done by Shri S.M. Sen Gupta. Since I have faith in his
capability I did not interfere in his work in any way. I think he has
done a fine job. However, responsibility of lapses, if there are
any, should entirely lie on him. I thank him for his devotion. JAI
GURU.
Chapter 1

Who Am I ?

Disciple: Master, I have pondered my life, past and

present, longing to know my duty; but it seems that I cannot
understand anything properly. The duty which I considered to be
right ten years ago, now seems wrong, I have abandoned it for a
different duty. How often in my life, and in how many ways, have I
determined my duty at one time, only to find it meaningless and to
leave it at another time ? I could not begin to count. I cannot
understand in any way what my life’s natural duty is. We fix one
thing as duty at one time, and another thing at another time,
tirelessly pursuing each one in turn, always hopeful of deriving
pleasure. But far from getting pleasure, we only aggravate our
pains. Master, you are the great among the wise and deeply
compassionate. Please show me this one thing. Why can’t I
ascertain my duty ? How can I fulfil the desperate yearning of my
soul ? Master, my suffering is unbearable. I beg you to teach me,
and rid me of this misery.
Guru : My child, I am gratified that you have asked this
question, for everyone will benefit from its answer. People are
deceived in this world; they determine different duties at different
times, always imagining that they are pursuing true pleasure.
They perform these duties like a mad man, toiling like beast
throughout their hard lives. But pleasure does not come; far from
it, the burden of their sorrows grows heavier and heavier, the last
days of their life are spent in deep repentance and remorse. Even
then, they cannot find a free moment to reflect with a calm mind,
to see that they have reached this improper end by following the
very course they thought to be proper. The heart which had
rushed so eagerly after pleasure now burns with pain. Still they
do not understand that they have not followed the right path
through life. My child, I bless you, that you may know this right
path, and be successful in its pursuit; and that you may help
others who have fallen into illusion, to understand this path, and
thus bring this miseries to an end.
My child, you want to know the proper path to follow
through life. But to which ‘you’ am I to explain this ? For [ see that
whatever state (awastha) you are in at a particular time, you
cannot understand anything to be proper which is not according
to that state; and so your understanding of duty also is dependent
upon that state. If the true duty happens to go against your
present state, you will not recognize it as duty, even if thousands
of irrefutable arguments are shouted from the rooftops.
When you are concerned about sex, then abstinence is
not considered to be your duty. Rather, your duty is to satisfy your
desire. On the other hand, when you are disciplined and self-
restrained, any form of wantonness is considered to be the
opposite of duty. When you are gripped with anger, then mercy
and kindness seem quite opposed to duty; and when you feel
merciful, then anger and hard-hearted ness are contrary to duty.
When you are filled with selfish cares, it is not your duty to be
generous; but when you feel benevolent, doing good to others is
duty. When you are a student, acquiring knowledge is duty;'
when a teacher, giving knowledge is duty. With the mind of a
materialist, duty is to amass as many objects as you can; and
with a mind turned towards salvation, duty is to shun these
objects like poison. My child, your notions of what is and is not
your duty are always according to your state (awastha). Anything
inconsistent with that state will never seem to be your duty, not
even if it is explained to you hundreds upon hundreds of times
Therefore I ask you : what is your swaroop (true self) ? Which
‘you’ has come to me to understand and decide duty ?
Disciple : Master, what you have said is clearly true,
beyond any iota of doubt: Whatever my state at any time, my
understanding of right and wrong, duty is always according to
that; and I cannot understand anything to be right or wrong
beyond that. As a young child, I considered nothing but games
and pranks to be my duty, and would not stop for all that scoldings
and even beatings could do. Now I see that I did not behave
rightly in childhood, and those games appear to me as frivolous
and foolish. We cannot understand anything beyond our own
state (awastha) and that state is constantly changing. Then will I
never understand the natural and true duty ? Will I waste my life
performing that which is not life’s real duty ? And if performing
that, which is not the natural duty, cannot yield natural pleasure,
then will I never enjoy true pleasure ? Will I only suffer misery
throughout my life ?
Guru : Child, calm yourself. What can you gain by
becoming so excited ? In that agitated state it will be all the more
impossible to determine what is right and what is not. Right and
wrong, duty and no duty, all depend upon your own intelligence
(jnan ). At every moment, you consider duty to be whatever your
intelligence dictates. When in time your mind changes, then the
duty it had prescribed also changes, and you are compelled to
see that it was not duty, and to leave it. You can know nothing
beyond your own intelligence alone. And, if this consultant of
yours is steeped in illusion, then whatever advice it gives you
must be mistaken. But with the help of this mistaken opinion, how
can you arrive at the true and natural duty ? You will be able to
know your true duty only when this consultant of yours, your
intelligence, is free from illusion. Therefore, I can see that as long
as your intelligence is improper, all your decisions about duty will
be improper. As long as your mind is under illusion, it will be
impossible to determine true duty. In these circumstances, you
must first see what you are thinking about. Then see whether
your present intelligence (jnan) is in illusion or not. And then learn
what state of mind is under illusion and what state is free of
illusion. You must study these matters with particular attention.
My child, if you carefully observe thoughts (jnan) you will
find that all your present understanding is relative. By comparing
one object with another you observe the difference between
them. You consider something to be right, and establish it as a
standard of right and proper; by comparing this with other things
you understand good and bad, far and near, and so on. It is only
this comparison which gives rise to the notion of 'other'. If there
were no comparison, there would be no sense of dwandwa
(twoness), and in such a state there is no possibility of
ascertaining good, bad, mine, yours, far and near. Knowledge of
what a thing actually is in itself, is only possible when no
comparison is made. Therefore, the only true and absolute
knowledge (jnan) is that which comes to the mind in a state
devoid of dwandwa. All other knowledge is relative. If you
observe inquisitively, you will see that the basis of relative
knowledge is ego, “I” (aamitva). I consider all things in com-
parison with and in relation to this “I”. In order to understand
anything, I compare it with this “I” and say I understand. Thus the
knowledge of self and the feeling of ego is the strongest and most
profound of all. I consider nothing to be so right or proper as I
myself. Only when I eliminate this particular “I” from my thought
(jnan) do I compare myself to myself alone.
My child, it is obvious that if the standard of knowledge is
under illusion, then everything measured by that false standard
would likewise be false and illusory. For example, 12 inches
make one foot, but if you take a foot to be eight inches, then all
your ideas about the length of a foot would be in illusion, and all
your measurements of length are bound to be mistaken. Rooms
which are actually 16 feet long will be calculated to be 24 feet
long, and you will insist them to be so. It is the same when I
understand other things in relation to “I” : as long as my
knowledge of “who am I ?” is illusory, then all relative knowledge
will be illusory. I will be able to understand without illusion only
when my object of comparison, this “I” is known without illusion.
Therefore, it is impossible to understand anything properly
unless I properly understand what I am. Therefore, unless I first
understand this “I”, it will also be impossible to know what my true
duty is. Whatever I think about myself, my idea of duty will always
be according to that. Therefore, since we cannot go beyond our
present state, we cannot understand the proper duty.
 My child, you do not understand your own self, you are
not acquainted with yourself. Then whose duty are you going to
decide ? And if you don’t know your own self, then whose desires
are you seeking to fulfil ? You are so deeply engaged in seeking
the duty and the pleasures of one whom you do not know at all.
Who is that one ? Even this you do not know. In the state in which
he exists, what are his wants ? What will bring him joy ? How is all
these to be decided ? This is why I say that people in this world
are rushing about like mad men in search of pleasure; but,
proceeding in this manner, an eternity would not suffice to attain
the joys which the soul (atma) desires. When I know myself,
when I understand what I am, then my needs, my wants, and the
pleasures I truely desire can be ascertained. The wise ’man’s
course is to know his real want before undertaking to fulfil it. It is
only natural that if one thing is the object of desire, then its
procurement will fulfil the desire and bring forth pleasure. Just as
in a state of thirst, water is the object of desire, and so drinking
water will remove the want and leave no desire. The fulfilment of
desire yields natural satisfaction and pleasure. In the same way,
if I can ascertain the natural want of my soul (atma), the fulfilment
of that want is bound to bring natural satisfaction and pleasure.
Now, in the state of thirst, only water is the object of want. If we do
not ascertain this, but instead we first think that lentils and rice is
our want, and then think that bread and butter is our want, and yet
another time think that money is what we want, and try to quench
our thirst by acquiring each of these in turn, or all of them at once
we will never, not in all eternity, fulfil the want of water. Rather, our
thirst will only grow stronger. In the same way, if we do not
ascertain the natural want of our soul, but try to fulfil it by this or
that or any other thing, we will never be free of that want; rather it
will go on increasing day by day. We see this very thing actually
happening. Man is struggling to fulfil his desire, but far from
fulfiling it, his want only increases day by day. Even so, it does not
occur to him that the natural duty is not being performed, that the
proper path is not being followed. Without ascertaining what his
want actually is, hundreds upon hundreds of efforts will not fulfil
it, or bring happiness. Thus, unless I know myself, what “I” am, it
is impossible to determine what I want, and what my feeling of
desire is actually for. And because I understand everything in
relation to this “I” then all my understandings will be illusory, so
long as my idea about myself is illusory. And this illusory
understanding will never recognize as duty that which the natural
and clear mind would aseertain to be the proper duty. Therefore,
my boy, before coming to any conclusion about natural duty and
the want of natural pleasure, I will first have to ascertain what
thing “I” actually am. Also long as I do not know myself, it will be
impossible to know my duty and my desire.
Chapter II

I Am Not Body

Disciple : Master ! How I dived headlong into illusion

(bhranti) and how I suffered being battered about in the whirlpool
of that illusion, helplessly bobbing up and down ! It is all so clear
from your teachings, that it seems as though it were actually
happening again. Oh ! All that has gone before is wasted ! In the
hope of gaining pleasure and happiness I have struggled so hard
all this time; but I do not even know the one for whom I suffered,
do not know (him) for whose pleasure I underwent such
hardships. I never cared to look at myself, to find out who I am, or
what I am. I never studied the object of my desire, never
discerned what would satisfy my want. I never tried to decide
what thing would bring that bliss for for which the soul (atma)
yearns so deeply. Without knowing who I am, I determined this,
that and countless other things to be the object of my desire. I
was so deep in illusion that despite all experiences, which proved
none of these things are able to fulfil my want (abhava), it still did
not occur to me that these objects were not the true objects of
desire. Who am I ? I do not know, yet I persist in struggling to
perform my duties; one at .this time, another at that time. The
person is not known, and I am deciding his duties ! Master, that I
have failed for so long to see so obvious and illusion, is the
greatest wonder to me ! After hearing your instructions it is clear
that trying to determine our duties or to ascertain what we desire
will be completely false so long as we do not know ourselves. I
understand that I must first of all ascertain what ‘P am, then
decide what it is I actually desire, and then see what I must do in
order to fulfil that desire. To determine all of these things is of the
utmost importance. But, even after studying the question very
thoughtfully, I am unable to settle anything about what I am. I
laugh at myself now, to finally see my own foolishness. All these
years I have been knowing this and that, mine and yours, him and
her, and so much else; but I do not know me ! And, am so ignorant
that I do not even feel the need to know myself. And whatsoever I
do know about myself, I do not know others to that extent. Under
these conditions, how wrong my opinions must be about what is
proper for others ! When I realize all these, I see that I have
passed all these years in illusion. Guru ! by my own thinking and
research I cannot understand the least thing about what I am.
You are almerciful. Your mercy and your grace is all that can free
the victims of illusion (bhranti). I beg you, by your grace and by
your kindness, to grant me knowledge of my self (atma jnan).
Show me who I am. Please, loosen this net of illusion and set me
free.
Guru : My son, I see how deeply my teachings have
affected you and I am pleased that you now feel the need to
know- yourself, and long for self-realization. In truth, he who does
not know himself is the greatest buffoon. Since everyone knows
all things in relation to himself, one who does not know himself
will know nothing but illusion. If the standard of comparison is
defective, everything measured with it is bound to be defective.
“Abandoning all desire, all anger, all greed and every
sort of attachment, I must look into myself and see who I am.
Those deprived of knowledge of the self, fall into the darkest
of hells.”
Among all tattwas, the atira tattwa should be the first
object of our knowledge. The moment one properly understands
the atma tattwa, then his intelligence (jnan) is illuminated with the
knowledge of all other tattwife. And one who is ignorant of the
atma tattwa, is ignorant of all tattwas.
At present you have no knowledge except that produced
through the senses. If you eliminate this sensory knowledge
(indriya jnan), what will be the state of your knowledge then ? You
cannot even say whether there will be any knowledge at all.
Therefore, in your search for the atma tattwa, you will not be able
to make any progress without starting from your sensory
knowledge. Therefore, since you understand nothing beyond
your senses, in order to explain the element of self, I will have to
use arguments which seem logical to you in your present state. In
this state of sensory knowledge, the moment we try to discover
who we are, our eyes immediately fall on our bodies. Whatever I
may be (in this state), I am 3^ cubits tall. Either I can say that I am
this body, or that I am something beyond this body that this body,
at present, is merely my place of residence, my house.
If I am only the body, then what will be called “I” ; hands, feet,
eyes, ears, nose, tongue, stomach, genitals, back, chest, brain ?
Which is “I” ? We commonly say ‘my hand’ and ‘my feet’. Just as
when we say ‘my book’ it is understood that I am not the book, in
the same way, when I say ‘my hand’ the idea is present that I am
not the hand. If I were the hand, I would say ‘I am hand’ and the
phrase ‘my hand’ would be meaningless. It is clear that saying
‘my hand’ implies that I am separate from the hand. Therefore, I
am not hand. In the same way I am neither feet, nor eyes, nor
ears, nor any of the rest. Then is the body as a whole, composed
of hands, feet, ears, eyes, and so on, me ! This also cannot be
because we say ‘my body’. You may argue, “We say ‘my
intelligence’, ‘my mind’, ‘my soul’, and so forth Then are none of
these— intelligence, mind, soul is to be considered ‘I’ ?” My boy,
whatever your sensory knowledge understands by the words
‘mind’, ‘intelligence’, ‘soul’ in reality “I” is not even that. Then what
is “I”? The truth would be incomprehensible to your present
intelligence otherwise I would have told you what “I” is. “I” is an
object beyond the perception of the senses, It cannot be reached
through speech, through mind, through senses,
Abanmanasogocharah. We see that our very language says I am
not body, I am something beyond the body.
Also see, the knower and the known, the one who understands
and the thing understood, are not one. If the seer and the seen
were one, there would be no difference between them. In that
state, when I am the realizer and the thing realized, I am all-
pervading, and duality (dwandwa)' does not exist. For those who
consider the seer and the Seeh to be one and the same, to them I
have nothing to say. But for you, in your understanding, the
realizer and the thing realized are not one, the knower is different
from the thing known. Body is the thing known. Therefore the one
who knows the body, is different from the body. Thus, I am not the
body.
On the other hand, if you say that the body and the ego are one,
then how can this feeling of ego disappear while body remains ?
In the state of sleep or death, the body does exist, but the sense
of self is not there. Then how can we believe the attachment of
body and ego to be inextricable ? Neither the body as a whole
no'r any part of the body is I, the knower. Eyes do not see, ears do
not hear—the seer or the hearer is different from the eyes or the
ears. The eyes are undoubtedly closed during sleep, but the ears
are not blocked. If the ears alone hear, then why do they not hear
in sleep ? I, the knower, must be different from eyes and ears;
eyes and ears are only the instruments for perception.
It must be accepted that this “I” was present in one form or
another even before the birth of this body. Creation of a thing
which from its very root has no existence is not possible. If this “I”
had not existed before, wherefrom would it have been created ?
Can the existence of a thing be possible if its existence is taken
away ? An existing substance may undergo a change in form, but
how can it be completely destroyed ? Therefore, I was present
even before the birth of this body and will be present even after
the dissolution of this body. In light of all these, one cannot accept
in any way that “I” is inseparable from the body.
Disciple : Master, on healing the last portion of
your,
speech, a doubt has arisen in my mind. We observe that in
nature, mixing two or more things in different proportions will
produce different states. For example, turmeric and lime mixed
together turn into another substance which is red. So it comes to
my mind that of all the elements existing in nature, some
particular combination in a particular proportion has produced
this body, and this intelligence as well. Variation in the combi-
nation will produce variations in body and in intelligence. Death is
nothing but this. In one aspect of this combination, body is
present, but intelligence does not exist; with some change in this
combination, body also ceases to exist. Therefore, I am the
elements, and after this body has decayed, I will again exist in the
form of elements. At present whatever is seen as the body is
simply a combination of elements. “I” exists in past, present, and
future. I do not perish, do not end. The state of “I” only undergoes
changes in form, due to different combinations and compositions
of elements. In this way, can it not be said that I am inseparable
from the body ?
Guru : My boy, this sort of objection is nothing but
false logic. Many scholars, in the pride of sensory knowledge,
have made similar arguments to establish oneness with the
physical organism. They brag about its importance, thinking the
body to be “I”. What can I call this but self-deception and
attachment ? If we accept your mutation of five or seven
elements, then how is it possible to feel an affection for any
particular body ? You have no kinship with any element; then how
can kinship arise for a group of elements ? How does this feeling
of pride find its place within you ? You are the result of a particular
combination, and it is not certain when some disturbance in this
combination will cause your sense of ego to disappear. Then how
can there be a sense of being the experiencer ? If we accept your
argument as true, that you are a combination of the five
elements, then what gives rise to all your notions of mine and
others’, (kith and kin), loss and gain-how, from this combination
of elements, does this ego arise? How many things you
understand in this way ! And how many arrangements, you make
for the comforts of your future, as though you would live forever !
Does it not all indicate illusion? My boy, if you really consider
yourself to be only a combination of elements, then leave this
pride of ego completely. The moment you leave it, I will have
nothing more to teach. Because it is this very pride which keeps
you in ignorance.
In the example of turmeric and lime that you offer, it must be
noted that lime has a colour and that turmeric also has a colour.
This is why you see a third and different colour when you mix
them. But, if you mix two colourless things will any colour result ?
Take a bit of space and a bit of air. Do you see anything of any
particular colour when you mix the air and the space ? On the
other hand, when a thing of one particular colour is mixed with
another thing of that very same colour, no other colour is
produced. It is natural rule that if a colourless thing is mixed with
another colourless thing, nothing of colour will be produced.
According to this rule, by mixing one material substance with
another material substance, only a material substance can be
produced. Nothing non-material can arise from this combination.
Therefore, no grouping of elements can produce the feeling of
consciousness, Therefore, “I”, the knower endowed with the
power of knowing, am not the product of a combination of
material elements. I am separate from material substance,
something beyond the elements. But since this ego is enjoined
with the body, you are under the illusion that a change in the body
is a change in the self. When the ego is not indentified with the
body, as in sleep, it does not consider itself changed when a
change occurs in the body. Due to this sense of ego enjoined with
the body, one considers that his separation from body-death-is
his separation from self. Actually, “I” has no connection with the
body. It is separate from and beyond the body.
For, if I were the body, then the qualities of the body would
naturally be my own qualities. When I look at childhood, youth
and old age, I clearly see that natural quality of body is change.
Therefore, change must also be the quality of “I”. But, in fact, I do
not like change. Change always gives me a feeling of sorrow and
grief. What else is disease or death, but a change in state ? Then
why should this “I”, whose very nature is change, feel sorrow at
these changes ? Is it possible to have a desire not only beyond
our nature, but opposite to our own nature? The very feeling of
sorrow at change indicates that change is not our natural quality.
Therefore we cannot consider “I” to be of one and the same
nature as body, whose nature is to change.
Where there is change, there is also want (abhava). Even if
nothing else were lacking at the time of change, the previous
state, disappearing as the succeeding state appears, must be
wanting. Change is the natural quality of body, and where there is
change there is want. Therefore the quality of the body is to be in
want. But “I” does not desire to be riddied with wants. Want only
torments me. Human nature desires to be perpetually free of all
wants. Under these conditions, how can I call myself identical in
quality to the body ?
In addition the body is finite. Everything about a finite
thing will naturally have limits. Then how can a thing which is
completely confined within a limit reach beyond that limitation ?
According to the natural rule of identity, if I am the body, then I am
also finite and everything about me has limitations. Nothing that
is mine can go beyond my own limitations. But we see that my
desires are without limit. How can a limited thing have desires
without limit ? How does this unlimited desire springs from me?
Thus it can also be understood that “I” is not finite like the body.
We also see that our desire to dissolve our wants and to
obtain enjoyments is never changing. We never desire too be in
want, or to end our enjoyments. If I am the body, then like the
body I must be transient and changing. But how can a transient
and changing “I” has a perpetual and constant desire ? This also
shows that “I” does not have the qualities of the body. I am
separate from the body. There is not a shadow of doubt in this
matter.
Chapter III

The Activity In Which Ego Is Rooted

Disciple : Master, for so long I did not feel the need to

know what I am, but after hearing your discourse I now feel the
great necessity of it in my heart. Who am I ? When I go in search
of it, I cannot arrive at any proper decision. I have followed your
arguments, and I am not body, I am separate from body. But I do
not understand what thing separate from body I am. Oh ! what
have I thought to be “1” all these years ? For whose pleasures
and pains have I been so restless and busy ? Master, I am
completely ignorant. By your kindness, lift this darkness, that I
may see my atma swaroop, and understand what I truly am.
Guru : My son, men suffer unending miseries in
countless ways, crying ‘mine, mine, mine’ without even knowing
their ownselves, without knowing what “I” is at all. The whole
world stands on this illusion (bhranti). I understand everything in
relation to myself. Therefore, whatever my understanding of
myself happens to be, all other things are understood according
to that, I am not body, I am separate from body : but under illusion
I have established ego sense (aamittva) with the body alone.
With the word “I”, body alone comes to mind. And whatever the
body suffers due to old age or disease, is considered to be
happening to this “I”. I have the intelligence of oneness with the
body, and so I cannot know any object beyond body or other than
body. For this reason, our feelings of kinship are attached to
things of body, and so we constantly try to fulfil our wants with
things of body. We long for food, drink, father, mother, wife,
children, and so on. As long as ego sense is tied to the body, it is
impossible to think otherwise. But we do not fulfil our want with
anything of the body. On this earth, from all the known parts of the
body, we choose one or another in our effort to remove want, yet
no one is able to achieve wantlessness. Still, even seeing that
the senses and the body cannot fulfil our want, this realization
does nut strike us. We yearn for uninterrupted pleasure, never
desiring our enjoyment to cases even for a moment, and
unchanging, incessant pleasure cannot possibly be secured with
the help of anything changing and transient. Yet all the organs of
the body are changing. But, due to the ego being so deeply
entangled with body, we are powerless, to even imagine our want
as separate from body. We want to think something to be
possible which is quite impossible; and at the root of our efforts to
make this impossibility possible, lies kalpana (imagination). But
in spite of our clearly seeing this, we still do not understand.
My child, I am not body, and so my wants are never
removed through any part of the body. What we must consider
now is this : if I am not body, then what am I ? My boy, the tattwa
(truth) of a true thing is proved in every facet of it. Go to any side,
examine it from any angle, survey it from any standpoint—that
param-tattwa (highest principle) inherent in it will always be
revealed. Now, the atma tattwa is the highest tattwa, and in every
object, the atma tattwa is seen. Therefore, those who know atma
without illusion, know all things without illusion, because atma is
the standard of comparison. True knowledge (jnan) can be had
only by those who have atma jnan (self-knowledge), who have
attained atma swaroop. Therefore, those who know themselves
are the wisest of men (jnani). Now in our quest for this atma
tattwa, it would be considered improper to talk about things which
your mind cannot conceive So,
I will take recourse to whatever your intelligence
comprehends as logical, in order to direct you to the atma tattwa.
My boy, the wisest of the wise, the Rishis, have taught how to
attain self- knowledge, because without this, all knowledge is
illusory : and this illusory knowledge cannot know the tattwa of
anything. Since different discipless have different sorts of
understandings, this one atma tattwa is elucidated in different
ways, according to the receptivity of the disciple’s mind.
My child, you are not body. Then what is it inside your
body which is beyond body ? Close your eyes for a little while,
and with a calm mind, observe yourself and see what you are.
You will see that within your body expansion follows contraction
and contraction follows expansion, and these are the activities
(kriya) of attraction and repulsion (aakarshan/vikarshun) which
go on incessantly. During repulsion, a certain volume of air is
expelled through the nostrils; and there is a morion (kriya)
downward, passing throat, chest, stomach, in order. At the end of
repulsion, attraction begins with a pull, and air enters the body
through the nostrils; and the motion (kriya) now goes slowly
upward, crossing stomach, chest and throat in order, moving
slowly toward the forehead. And before it pauses for even a
moment, repulsion begins again. This activity of air going out at
the time of repulsion and going in at the time of attraction, is
called respiration. In reality, this respiratory activity has no
connection with the air. We are immersed in an ocean of air, and
so due to activity (kriya) of contraction and expansion, the air
around us enters the body at one time and goes out of the body at
another time. The fish are surrounded by water, and so, due to
this activity, water enters and leaves their bodies. The fact is that
respiration is not caused by air or water, but by the activity of
attraction and repulsion. Without this activity there is no
respiration, even though air or water surround us all the time.
My child, contraction and expansion are going on in your body.
With a calm mind, observe it minutely for some time. You will
discover that your present ego (aamittwa) is rooted in this
activity. Variations in the ego-sense occur with variations in this
activity. In the presence of this activity, the ego-sense is present,
and with its disappearance, ego-sense disappears. When this
activity ceases, the ego-sense (aham-vodh) no longer exists. We
call that death. But when the ego-sense ceases, the activity does
not likewise cease. Because during sleep, there is no sense of
ego, but this activity goes on. Therefore, I do not produce this
activity; rather, it has produced the feeling of ‘ I”. Now, since ego-
sense is established on this activity of attraction and repulsion, I
will name it ego-producing (aamittva-moolak) and ego-exciting
(aamittva-vodhok) activity. This ego-producing activity goes on in
the body incessantly without any regard for our desires. The
roots of ego-awareness are so entangled in this activity that
when the activity changes, our intelligence changes. When this
activity is centred in a particular part of our body, then a
corresponding feeling is produced in us. In this way, if the activity
is predominant in the lowest region (muladhar), there is a
Corresponding sexual feeling (kama-bhava); if the activity is in
the area of the stomach (udar) then appetite (kshudha) is felt; if in
the heart centre (vaksha) there are the feelings of sympathy and
affection ( sneh ) ; if in the throat centre (kantha), a feeling of love
(prem); and various other feeliifgs are produced as the activity
predominates in different parts of the body. When this ego-
exciting activity passes down to the genitals, it is impossible for
sexual feeling not to be produced. And, when we feel our sex
impulse excited, if we observe this activity, we will see that it has
gained access to that region. My child, we are only puppets of
this ego-producing activity. Whatever state this activity is in at a
particular time, we are moved by a corresponding feeling, and we
begin to dance. To have a feeling contrary to the effect of this
activity is beyond our capacity.
The activity of attraction and repulsion is called Vibration
(spandan). Wherever activity (kriya) occurs, vibration is present.
In absence of vibration, activity cannot exist. Therefore, our
present knowledge is the result of vibration, and with a change in
vibration our knowledge also undergoes a change. Whatever
sort of vibration we have, our knowledge is according to that. One
sort of vibration cannot produce the knowledge which
corresponds to another sort of vibration. Therefore, we see that
our present knowledge has got nothing of value but this : at
different times, different understandings develop according to
different vibrations—this is all that we knew. Due to the change in
activity and the change in intelligence, what we thought to be
right before is not considered to be right after a change. In this
way, our understanding changes with activity, so our decisions of
right and wrong constantly change. I am not free to understand in
this way or that for Very long. In such circumstances, what can I
call myself but the puppet of activity ? I am forced to understand a
thing to be right according to the activity at a particular time, but
with the change of activity, I will no longer consider the same
thing to be right. Even this present state of activity, by which I
understand that I am the puppet of activity, may change in a
moment, no longer enabling me to see this. Perhaps, feeling that
I am the knower and experiencer, I will want to assert “I am I” and
there is none like me; I am the doer, and not a puppet !
My son, to my mind, the world is like a puppet stage, worked by
activity. Due to the power of activity and the changes of activity,
the puppets one by one present all varieties of sentiment. At one
time one laughs, after a moment he weeps, then he sits calmly for
a while, and in another moment he rolls up his sleeves to enter
into a heated debate. How many things he understands ! — good
and bad, gain and loss, mine aud theirs, and so much more !
Whatever the activity compels him to understand at a particular
time, he is influenced by corresponding feelings. He thinks “I am
the doer”, “I am the experiencer” and “I am the enjoyer”. One is
astonished to observe this wonderful play ! “I” have no freedom.
Despite all our efforts, we cannot as youths acquire the
knowledge of small children, nor can we as old men acquire the
knowledge of youths. We understand only according to this ego-
producing activity, and have no capacity to understand anything
contrary to it. And even so, I still think I am the doer, I: am the
experiences It is impossible for one not to understand as the
activity makes him understand at any time, and it is also
impossible to understand in that same way after the activity has
changed. Even so, we constantly decide right and wrong, just
aud unjust, and counties other things. One is overwhelmed and
bewildered to see this activity making different people dance with
different sentiments and different manners. This very activity,
changing imperceptibly, pulls the puppets’ strings, to make one
man deliver a loud speech, making animated gestures and
postures, while others hear it all attentively. Because of this
activity, one man in court is sitting on the bench performing the
role of judge, while another man plays the part of plaintiff. One
man is putting on his fine wedding suit to go and marry his
beloved with great pomp and show, while another sits by the
dead body of his beloved, with tears streaming down his face.
Somewhere, seeing the face of his new-born son, a man rejoices
in pride and happiness, while somewhere else, mourning the
loss of his worthy son, a man bursts into wails of distress. In how
many places and in how many ways is the drama feelings being
played out ? Who can measure that ? Why laugh ? Why weep ?
Who makes I os laugh and who makes us weep ? There is no
trace of that. What a wonderful play ! Nothing is permanent. The
doer has no stability, what he does has no stability, and for whom
it is done has no stability. And he is ceaselessly trying to establish
a permanent thing in a permanent manner.
My child, it is amazing to see that while a man cannot understand
anything which is not according to his activity, still, in one state of
activity he thinks he understands what takes place in another
state. Whatever sort of activity is going on, that sort of knowledge
is produced. No knowledge which the activity does not bring
forth, can be an object of our intelligence. A man, under the
impression that he properly understands the future, decides
what he will and will not do in the future. There is no activity of the
future in him and he can understand nothing beyond activity. Still
he decides right and wrong, proper and improper about the
future. Is it not illusion ? The future is not present ; the ego-
producing activity of the future is not the same as that of the
present, and therefore will not make you understand as you do at
present. Still, with the intelligence caused by the present activity,
you ascertain that which only can be known according to future
activity. Is it not illusion ? It is impossible that future knowledge
can arise out of present activity, so whenever you decide about
your future, it is with the knowledge corresponding to your
present activity. In the future, your mind will not be as it is now.
Therefore, the intelligence which will decide your duties, is not
the present intelligence ; yet you are deciding your future duties
with the understanding of the present. This sort of decision about
duty can never remain correct in future. You actually see that the
understanding which decides duty has no stability. Stability is not
even possible. When we look at the past and remember the
decisions we made concerning our future, we find that nothing
has actually occurred according to that expectation. Did you ever
think, ten or twenty years ago, that you would fall to this state, and
suffer the troubles you have at present ? The future is unseen but
a man who treats it as though it were there before him, passes his
days and nights in anxiety over it.
My child, what else will I tell you about the strangeness of
the world? Wherever there is change, there is activity. Without
activity, change is impossible. Therefore whatever changes I
undergo, are all due to the changes of activity going on in me.
The very activity of attraction and repulsion has given rise to the
feeling of “I”. The ego-sense is inextricably entangled with this
activity : it disappears when the activity stops, and it undergoes
changes whenever this activity changes. Therefore what is this
“I” ? To know that, we must follow and understand this activity of
attraction and repulsion.
Chapter IV

Four Sounds

Disciple : Master, from your teachings, I clearly see that

this ego-sense arises from the activity of attraction and replusion
going on in our body. It is clear to me that when this two- sided
activity disappears or changes, the ego-sense also disappears
or changes. But what “I” am, I still cannot recognize. Is this
activity of attraction and repulsion alone “I” (ami) ?
Guru : Dear boy, the activity is not anything. Activity is
only one form or another of motion, of vibration. Shifting, shaking
or moving about is not a substance or an object. Movement
cannot take place without a support. Wherever motion is present,
there is also some substance or some object present as a
support. Without it, no activity or motion (kriya) can be conceived.
Watch a leaf shaking on a tree. That movement appears by using
the leaf of the tree for a support. The support (aadhar) cannot be
absent if motion or activity (kriya) is present It has been that I am
not body. I also am not the activity in the body which produces
ego. Then what am I ? The answer will have to be that I am the
very support of that activity. Now you will ask, what is the support
of the activity ? The support of every activity is inactivity,- or
stillness. Activity cannot be supported by activity. If activity itself
could support activity, then it would also need some support.
Without any support, activity is not possible. And so you will have
to accept that ultimately the basis of activity is not activity but
inactivity, stillness. Therefore, whatever that inactive, motinless
substance may be which supports the ego-producing activity,
that alone is “I”. And that alone is soul (atma) in its natural state.
Therefore the Rishis said that soul is motionless, Atma Nishkriya.
In absence of activity, change is not possible. Therefore, soul is
unchanging, cannot be cleaved, cannot be drowned, cannot be
burned; it is eternal, it is truth. That which is motionless and
unchanging cannot have any want. Therefore soul is all knowing
(purnajnan swaroop). Where there is no want, there can be no
pain; hence soul is blissful (anandmoy). My boy, this is why soul
is called Being, Consciousness, Bliss (Satchidanand).
Disciple : Master, from your teachings I have not been
able to learn anything about the original nature of self. The soul,
with all the epithets and adjectives about its form : omniscient,
being, consciousness, bliss, all that you have said— to all that is
nothing but Words and sounds. Of what this “I” Or soul actually is,
I have understood nothing. Now, I pray, kindly teach me how I can
realize through my -own experience that soul which is still,
enternal and truth.
Guru : My boy, to understand a still and inactive
substance with the intelligence can by no means be possible.
Intelligence is produced by the activity of attraction and repul-
sion. Your language and your mind are both dependent upon
activity, because without activity, there is nothing like mind,
language or intelligence. But soul is still. Therefore it is impos-
sible to understand the soul by means of language or mind. And
so it has been said that the soul is beyond speech, beyond mind,
beyond senses : Abanmanasogocharah.
Disciple : Master, if soul (atma) or my natural original
form (swaroop) cannot be understood with my intelligence, then
by what means will I ever understand ? If we eliminate our in-
telligence, we have no capacity to understand anything. And
unless we understand the true nature of self, freedom from
illusion is not possible, because we understand all other things
by comparing them with the self. Then, is there no way to escape
from the snare of this illusion ?
Guru : My boy, don’t get so excited. There is certainly a
way to destroy this illusion. If it could not be destroyed,, then it
could not be illusion : it would be truth. The nature of illusion is
non-existence. Illusion felt only when you deviate from the
original form. Therefore, if it is natural to remain in the original
form, then illusion is merely an unnatural deviation. Illusion would
be inescapable only it it were impossible to remain in one’s
original form. My boy, it is your present, unnatural knowledge that
tells you that the original state cannot be sustained, and there is
no escape from illusion. Since you understand everything by
comparing it to your self, you cannot remove this illusion unless
you know the natural form of your self. So, I shall reveal to you
how the original form of the self can be known.
My boy, I have already told you what produces this ego-
sense. It is produced from and established on the activity going
on in your body, the activity of attraction and repulsion. On
observation you will see that your feelings are inseparable and
continuously related to this activity. In the presence of this
activity, feeling is present, and in the absence of activity it
disappears. Depending upon the state of the activity at a parti-
cular time, a corresponding feeling is produced. A particular type
of activity stimulates a particular type of feeling which cannot be
produced except with that activity. Therefore feeling and activity
are inseparable. Feeling according to activity, and activity
according to feeling, are always present everywhere.
Also see that wherever activity is present in nature,
sound also is present. According to mild, medium or sharp
activity, the sound will be mild, medium or sharp. Likewise,
whatever sort of sound there is, the activity will be produced
according to that. When both hands are rubbed together with
force, a loud sound of‘khash-khash’ is produced. If this rubbing is
done more and more softly, the sound also will grow softer and
softer, until it may no longer even be heard. We must accept that
while rubbing the hands, a corresponding sound is produced.
And, in order to produce just that particular ‘khash-khash’ sound
the hands must be rubbed in that very way. Therefore just as
activity and feeling are inseparable, activity and sound are also
inseparable Sound corresponding to activity, and activity
corresponding to sound are always present everywhere.-
Therefore, activity, feeling and sound (kriya, bhav, shabda),
these three are inseparable. In the presence of one, the other two
are also correspondingly present.
I have already told you that the present ego-sense arises from
activity. But activity, feeling and sound are inseparable. That is,
activity, feeling and sound are three manifestations of one and
the same thing. Therefore, just as the present “I” is produced
from activity, it can also be said that this “I” is produced from
feeling or from sound. Therefore, of these three—activity, feeling
and sound, if any one is changed, a corresponding change takes
place in the “I” also. And it is impossible to make a change in this
“I” without making a change in any one of these three. If you
reflect upon your Self, you will see that all sorts of changes occur,
rooted in activity, feeling or sound. When you are looking towards
activity, then you think that the changes have their roots in
activity, such as activity in the stomach or in the genitals which
creates changes in you. When you are looking towards feelings,
you think that the changes taking place have their roots in
feelings or sentiments, such as love, compassion and
benevolence which change you altogether. And when you are
looking towards sound, then you think that the changes in you
have their roots in sound, just as musical tunes and mournful
tones create changes in you. In reality, with a change in any of
these three things— activity, feeling or sound—a corresponding
change takes place simultaneously in the other two. For this
reason, three methods of sadhana (spiritual discipline) have
been prescribed; one with the help of activity, one with the help of
feeling and one with the help of sound. Now see, you have no
special control over activity. *But activity is not some material
thing - wide, long, broad—which can be taken in hand and
changed. The only way to change activity, then, is through sound
or feeling. 'Therefore, a change in “I” will have to be made
through feeling or sound. Now of these two, we have no
special mastery over the realm of feelings. For whatever reasons
it may be so, certain fortunates, having religious merits by nature,
have predominance in the realm of sentiment. For such virtuous,
contemplative and devoted persons, Bhakti Yoga is excellent.
But the ordinary man has no particular control over his feelings. It

* In the effort to change the ego-sense by means of activity lies the origin of
Hatha Yoga.
In the effort to change the ego-sense with the help of feeling, lies the origin of
Bhakti Yoga; and with the help of sound, Raj Yoga or Jnan Yoga.
is not always possible to excite a particular sentiment or mood,
according to one’s desire or need. But everybody has die
necessary freedom to pronounce any particular sound. [While
producing any particular sound, it is not simply that the sound
itself is pronounced, but that the feeling and the activity are
automatically changing in accordance with that sound. This
lappens because, as it has previously been shown, activity,
feeling and sound all are dependent upon one another. This is
the greatness of using sound, or mantra to effect a change in “I” :
the ease and control which we have in controlling sound as
compared with activity and feeling.** For this reason I shall tell
you how the real nature of self can be known with the help of
sound.
My boy, activity and sound are inseparable. Now that I am going
to explain how to know the real nature of self (atma swroop) with
the help of sound, you must concentrate attentively, to ascertain
what sounds are present in your ego-producing activity (aamittva
moolak). Notice closely the activity of attraction and repulsion
going on in your body. At the time of repulsion, when a small
quantity of air passes out through the nostrils, a sound of ‘hum’
(hoom) is produced through the nose. The clear proof of this is
that by producing hum’ with the nose, a little air goes out. I am not
talking about a thing which can be understood theoretically. It can
only be understood by partical experience. When air passes out
through your nose, you can observe that the sound ‘hum’ is
produced. By concentrating on any sound except ‘hum’, the air
will not pass out in that uninterrupted and flowing manner. Do not
think that this happens to you alone. Without any distinction of
** A number of people disregard the Mantra by calling it a product of Hindu
superstition. To talk lightly of the power of Mantra cannot be justified unless the
inseparable connection of sound with activity is dismissed. If a certain sound is
present with a certain feeling, then the practice of that sound is the natural
method to excite that feeling; because the activity running under that sound will
arouse that feeling. Combining imaginary names and syllables which cause
activity that has no correspondence to the desired sentiments, is rather an
unnatural device to achieve the desired feeling. So, practising the sound which
corresponds to the desired feeling is more scientific than practising the sounds
of some imaginary terms. Sounds corresponding to the desired sentiments are
called Mantras.
race or religion, the ‘hum’ sound is made with the nose during the
activity of repulsion in everyone. Therefore it is seen that the
‘hum’ sound is inseparably connected with the repulsion activity.
Repulsion takes place the moment ‘hum’ is said; and where there
is repulsion, there is a simultaneous ‘hum’ sound. When this
repulsion activity passes the throat; then the sound ‘H’ is
produced through the mouth. Take your attention away from the
nose and concentrate on this activity to ascertain the truth of this.
Activity clearly moves down with the sound ‘H' And so, when
giving birth and when copulating, people of every caste and
every creed must bring the activity down by producing the sound
'H' Therefore it has been seen that at the time of repulsion the
sound of ‘hum’ through the nose and the sound of ‘H' through the
mouth is simultaneously produced.
After repulsion, at the time of attraction activity, or contraction, a
certain quantity of air enters the body through the nostrils and
simultaneously ‘uni’ (oom) sound, or indistinct Pranava*, you find
that the activity is contracted and moves upwards. With that, air
enters the body through the nose. And along with this Pranava
sound, the activity (which had moved downwards with the ‘H’
sound at the time of repulsion), now moves upward, crossing
genitals, stomach, and rising up to the throat; and with that, the
sound ‘A’ ( a) is produced. If you open your mouth and observe
what different sounds are associated with attraction and
repulsion in your body, you will see that while pulling up,
(attraction), ‘A’ is produced, and at the downward push,
(repulsion) ‘H’ is produced; and that these two ‘A’ and ‘H’ sounds
are produced incessantly. These ‘A’ and ‘H’ sounds will be very
clearly heard if we observe a sleeping child. But this activity and
these sounds are not related to human beings only. Not only in all
living beings, but wherever this activity of attraction and repulsion
is present, these very sounds will be noticed. Due to the
differences in the organisms, gross or fine, distinctions in the
sounds may be observed. A fatigued dog, resting in the shade,
opens his mouth as he sleeps and the ‘A’ and ‘H’ sounds can be
very clearly heard. (Dogs have stronger repulsion activity, and so
in dogs, the repulsion sound ‘H’ is heard more clearly than the
attraction sound of ‘A’). Wherever the activity of attraction and
repulsion is present, ‘um’ and ‘hum’ is also present. When this
activity, moves downward and upward past the throat, the
sounds h, a, h, a, h, a, are simultaneously present. As long as this
a, h sound is being made in the body, then the activity which
produces ego is present, and so t he ego is present. And with the
extinction of this a, h sound, the sense of ego which is attached to
the body, disappears. For this reason “I” has been designated
with the name Aham. This Aham which I call myself is not an
imaginary term, like “I” or “ego”. Aham is always produced
naturally inside the body. At present, whatever is understood with
the word “I” disappears. With the varieties and distinctions in
these two sounds, ‘A’ and ‘H’, that is, with distinctions in attraction
and repulsion, a distinction in “I” also takes place. Whatever is
understood when we say “I” also takes place. Whatever is
understood when we say “I”, Aham is inextricably connected with
that. Therefore, Aham alone is the “I” rooted in the present
activity.
My boy, the ‘um’ and ‘hum' and ‘a' ‘h’ sounds which are
heard with attraction and repulsion, are called the Four Sounds
(Chaturvarna) or the Four Letters. Attraction and repulsion is
present everywhere in creation. With various distinctions in
attraction and repulsion, strange and wonderful, dappled and
speckled things are born into the world. Therefore, the four
sounds A,H,UM, which are present with attraction and repulsion,
are present everywhere; and with variations in activity, there are
variations in these four sounds; and thus creation evolves. But
why look only to the living world ? Wherever you see contraction
and expansion, you will observe the sounds ‘um’ and ‘hum’. In
the same way, when a speeding train stops short, contracting the
the motion, a deep sound of ‘um’ is heard simultaneously. If a
running elephant stops short, a very clear contraction sound is
also heard, like that of Pranava from his body.
In nature wherever there is repulsion, attraction is hidden
in background. If attraction had not been lying dormant in
repulsion, creation would not have been possible. Our
intelligence, caused by attraction and repulsion, cannot guess
where the atoms and molecules might have been scattered to.
This ‘hum’ which is present in motion, or repulsion has ‘h’ as its
repulsion part, followed by ‘um’ indicating attraction, keeping it
restrained and controlled. Had the ‘urn’ of attraction not been
there, universe would have been torn asunder and scattered.
Repulsion is nothing but ‘h' split from ‘a’ and standing alone : the
consonant ‘h’ without the vowel ‘a’. ‘Urn’ joins ‘h’ in different
proportions and this produces a, a’, ka, kha, and so on, all the 49
sounds indicated by the alphabet’ both vowels and consonants.
My boy, the moment we are able to separate this ‘h%
repulsion activity itself will dissolve, and with that, we will be
established in the state of inactivity. I have said before that we
have no control over the ego-producing activity. At the root of this
activity, I experience myself as the doer. Therefore, 'h' cannot be
eliminated from this a-h activity and extinguished by any power of
my own. Therefore, whatever device can naturally and
automatically reduce ‘h’ little by little, that method (sadhana)
alone is to be practised. That very device is the Initiation Mantra
(Diksha Mantra). With the help of this Initiation Mantra one is
freed from repulsion quite naturally and is established in the
motionless, form of self which is the true form **At that very
moment, knowledge of the self comes to the intelligence. That
state alone is free from illusion. When you are able to attain that
non-illusory state it will not be necessary to teach you duty. In that
state, free from illusion, all elements will, of their own accord,
reveal themselves to you.

** Guru Janardan Paramahansa has said, “Whatever is left after elimination of

repulsion, that is AJAPA”
Chapter V

The Initiation Mantra

Disciple : Master, you have been kind enough to show

me the need to realize the atma-tattwa. And, hearing your
discourse I have been able to get an inkling of it, to the extent that
is possible with language. Now I greatly desire an understanding
of the Initiation Mantra, which can actually help one to know
atma-tattwa. You are merciful by nature. Therefore I pray, kindly
teach me, an unfortunate fellow, about the Initiation Mantra.
Guru : My boy, what more can I say in words about the
Initiation Mantra ? The Initiation Mantra is that which, by being
known, leaves nothing more to know ; which, by being gained,
leaves nothing to be gained ; which of its own accord, reveals its
truth to us with great eloquence ; which, being known, removes
all doubts concerning the method of practice ; which is realized
and experienced, theoretically and practically, to be the truth.
That alone is the Initiation Mantra. Attraction and repulsion go on
ceaselessly in your body, and as a result of that activity, your ego-
sense prevails. In the presence of activity it is impossible to attain
the motionless state ; and in an unstable and fluctuating state, it
is impossible to realize even an idea of the element of self. With
your present intelligence you can see that if you are running, or
angry, this ego-exciting activity is greatly intensified, and you feel
restless and unsteady. At that time you cannot make any proper
decisions on any subject. In a little while this ego-producing
activity grows milder, and you gain stability and increase your
power of comprehension. In a mild state of activity when the
repulsion is quietened, the power of comprehension is more
keen. But comprehension is complete only when repulsion stops
completely. Then knowledge is complete and free from illusion.
Therefore, the atma-tattwa can be perfectly known only in a state
of inactivity, free from repulsion. Therefore the right and genuine
method for attainment must be that which by itself and in a
natural way makes the repulsion activity mild, which
concentrates and completes the power of comprehension and
makes a man fit to know the atma-tattwa. This method is the
Initiation Mantra. From very ancient times the World Teachers,
the Seven Rishis, observed the processes of activity, and
ignoring the ego, they discovered a technique by which the
repulsion activity naturally reduces itself and grows mild. That
very technique is the Initiation Mantra. Needless to say, the
Initiation Mantra is not a combination of imaginary names and
terms. It has no relation to imagination. Rather, under its
influence, imagination disappears. This Initiation Mantra is not
any imaginary name of collection of names in any language : it is
not English, or Sanskrit, or Bengali, or Arabic, or Persian, or any
other spoken language. For this reason, practice of this Initiation
Mantra alone is the universal practice. I will, hereafter, give this
Initiation Mantra the name Mool Mantra, meaning Root Mantra.
My boy, your own intelligence shows you that things are
valued differently according to need. Water and air are
necessary to maintain life, and so they are valued as life itself. A
thing is considered precious and valuable to the man who needs
it. But for another man, who does not need it, it is not valued at all.
A large sum of money can be gotten by selling a diamond. With
that money, the necessities of life can be purchased, so a man
considers a diamond to be precious. But it serves no purpose to a
monkey and to a monkey it is simply a worthless lump of stone.
(You see one man spending his money to have dead fish
removed from his pond and another is spending money to
purchase dried fish to eat). Therefore, nothing has any intrinsic
value. We decide value in proportion to our need. So the person
who understands the need for attaining self-knowledge will see
that this Mool Mantra is an invaluable treasure. For others it is
worthless. For one who can understand that his present
knowledge is mistaken and that he can have no idea of reality,
who knows that he is suffering endless miseries because he has
fallen into illusion, and is anxious to be freed from illusion, for
such a one is this Mool Mantra. Two hundred years back,
countless people lived on this earth, and today not one them
survives. And of all those who are alive on earth today, not even
one will remain alive after two hundred years. Those who
consider this, understand that death is inevitable and that there is
no certainty as to when it will come; that one dies alone, and no
one of this world can accompany him; that one has sacrificed for
the kinship fretted for the comforts of those who will not even
remember his name after his death; and that all those worldly
objects and affairs which seemed so essential that for their sake
one has ventured out day and night to work in perilous
conditions, would all lie useless the moment his eyes were
closed. Those who contemplate these things become indifferent
to family relations and worldly objects and are intent on finding
out where they will go after death and what will happen to them.
For such people the Mool Mantra is meant.
On the other hand, if one’s heart is always hankering after
uninterrupted pleasure, and he tries to fulfil that desire with
transient and perishable things, knowing the impossibility of this,
Mool Mantra is not meant for him. No worldly minded person at
the time of his death has ever testified that he had attained
genuine pleasure by indulging in the wordly gratifications of
greed and sex and so on, and had thus fulfilled all desires and
been satisfied. Rather, such men leave this world suffering bitter
remorse and deep repentence, until their last breath. Even then,
if a person is so mad that he can attain pleasure with food and
sex, still Mool Mantra is not meant for him. Everyone on this earth
is full of wants. Everyone is a beggar of pleasures, and tries to
fulfil one want with another, which only increases his want; and
even then, if one tries to decrease his want by joining those
people who are also suffering from want, the Mool Mantra is not
meant for him. Sensory knowledge is transient. Our own past
clearly shows that no decision, no conclusion arrived at with
sense perceptions is proper. Even then, if one has firm faith in
this sort of fallible sense perception, and, knowing that his own
knowledge is mistaken, still is not ready to abandon his
confidence in it, then Mool Mantra is not meant for him. At the root
of all our thoughts and reflections is language, imaginary names
and terms. If we eliminate these imaginary names and terms we
eliminate the terms of duality, such as good, bad, mine, and
others’, real, and unreal and so on. Therefore, if imagination
(kalpana) is at the root of duality (dwandwa), a person is delirious
with this imaginary sense of duality and is eager to immerse
himself in the springs of imagination, for such a man Moo! Mantra
is not meant. For the man who considers the objects of this
illusory and sensory knowledge to be so real that for their sake he
behaves with violence, malice, envy, falsehood, fraud, deceit
and hypocrisy, for him also Mool Mantra is not meant.
My boy, if the Mool Mantra is given to a man not fit for it, he
will be harmed, because disrespect and enmity towards Guru will
inevitably arise from it. Whom does the worldly man with his
materialistic mind consider to be his enemy ? The one who tries
to deprive him of his indulgences. The materialistic person, by
practising Mool Mantra, will reduce the force of his activity;
consequently the yearning for the desired objects will little by little
be uprooted from his mind. But in that state, his innate knowledge
tells him that what has happened to him was done by the Guru for
some motive or self-interested aim, and because of that, he will
feel enmity and disrespect towards Guru. Similarly, a man who is
strongly attached to worldly goods, has a proportionately strong
ego-producing activity, so strong that in his mind there is no
doubt that worldly objects are real. Such a person cannot
practise Mool Mantra, even if, under the influence of his friends
he is encouraged to practise Mool Mantra. Intensely, against his
nature, still his natural conviction of the truth of objects will
prevent the activity from diminishing, although the natural effect
of the Mool Mantra may be on the very verge of doing so. In this
way, due to these simultaneous, opposite activities, the fellow
may think himself abnormal, or it may drive him mad, or he may
fear that he will die. Ultimately the impression becomes so deep
rooted that the practice of Mool Mantra is not pleasurable at all,
but only produces a restless mind and a restless body. Having
arrived at this conclusion through his own experience, no desire
to practise Mool Mantra will ever be born in him, and his way to
the non- illusory state will be blocked through births after births.
For this reason, it is not proper to give Mool Mantra to an
undeserving person at any time. It will harm him, and his
example will cause indifference to Mool Mantra among others,
and so he is not only harmed, but is also the cause of harm to
others.
Disciple: Master, what you have said about the merits of
the person who is to receive Mool Mantra, is quite logical to my
mind in one way, but in another way I cannot make sense of it.
From your teachings I understood that in an illusory state, it is
impossible to ascertain the real and natural duty. I also
understand that it is impossible to ascertain the real and ratural
duty. I also understand that it is impossible to attain a non-illusory
state unless the element of self is known; and that it is impossible
to know the atma swaroop unless one attains the inactive state of
no repulsion; and that it is impossible to attain the repulsionless
state unless one is able to reduce the ego-producing activity in
natural manner by the practice of Mool Mantra; and 1 hat it is not
possible to attain fitness for Mool Mantra unless worldly relations
and worldly objects are borne with complete detachment. Then it
comes to this, that in order to ascertain the natural duty, or to
achieve the non- illusory state, one must become a Sannyasi
(ascetic) by detaching himself from each and everything
pertaining to the world. Considering this teaching of yours to be
true, if all the people in the world follow this and become
Sannyasi, then there will be no world. But for everyone to
become a Sannyasi and destroy all of the world does not much
suit God’s purpose. That He created the world with the intention
that we destroy it, does not seem to be the proper view. And, to
become parasite on the people of the world, while feeling
indifferent to their needs for food, drink, education, medicine, and
so on, seems at the very least to be ungrateful and sinful. In the
Scriptures there is a particular provision of benificence and the
ancient Rishis made distinctions in recipients according to their
fitness. But they have never said that everybody must become a
sannyasi and leave the world and its responsibilities. Therefore, I
inquire whether any effort ai all can possibly be made towards
attaining knowledge while still living in the world ? Are worldly
people completely undeserving to receive the Initiation Mantra ?
Guru : My child, hearing your words I observe the
Mother Nature at play, and I cannot restrain my laughter. One is
amazed to see how she shows her play through people. Any
state which we don’t like, is logically proved wrong by our
intelligence; that is only the work of Nature. It is also the work of
Nature to collect logical arguments to support the state which we
do like. For this reason, you have raised all these objections
against becoming a sannyasi. You yourself don’t want to be a
sannyasi, so you express the fear that if everyone were to
became sannyasi, the world would crumble. Your affairs are for
you. How does it happen that you are anxious about whether
everyone will become sannyasi or not ? When it is said ‘be
worldly minded’ you express no fear that everybody will become
worldly minded. And where and how do you happen to be worried
about how God will protect His kingdom ? Among worldly people
you have no objection to knaves, cheats, liars, heretics, wicked,
hypocrites and villians. God can maintain and manage the
Creation filled with such beastly men, yet you think He will find
Himself helpless and without means to protect His creation if it is
populated entirely by saints and sannyasis. This proves your
great attachment to worldly affairs. People frequently claim
God’s desire as a motive to accomplish their desired object,
saying that if a thing created by God is not meant for use and
enjoyment, then why did He create it ? You have also indicated a
purpose for God. You have no knowledge of who God is, or what
His form is, and still you are talking about His desires and non-
desires. You do not discuss the desires of the people you do not
know in the world. Then why are you doing so in the case of God
? Of course you can say by reading the Scriptures written by the
great Rishis who know God, you can gain some knowledge of
Him But if the Rishis are in quite the opposite state from you, then
how can you possibly understand the exact meaning of their
discourse ? My boy, by dressing God in various ways according
to your thoughts and sentiments, you have reduced Him to
nothing but a chameleon. Actually God is nothing like your
conception of Him. God is everywhere, but He is not in falsehood
and in imagination, for these have no existence. Therefore,
unless you eliminate imagination, you cannot comprehand God.
Under these circumstances, your labelling His desires and non-
desires is rooted only in your own desires.
My boy, all that you have said about providing food and
drink for the poor, arranging for proper medical aid and for
education, is said to be an obligation according to the Scriptures,
and has been prescribed as religious duty. That is all quite
correct. But all these activities, if not sanctioned by the self-
realized family preceptor, or performed by the saints, will not
bring about self-realization. Whatever you do with your own
knowledge, will have food or sex or pride at its root because your
present knowledge is the result of your ego-producing activity.
You have no knowledge beyond your own ego. The same work,
done with your own knowledge or done on the instructions of a
saint, will have vastly different effects. On one side ego is
predominant, and on the other side ego is diminished. To attain
self-realizaion, it is absolutely necessary to reduce the ego-
producing activity. Perphps you are not concerned about food
and sex for yourself; perhaps providing food and clothing to the
poor and helpless is purely due to your benevolent disposition.
Although it is not obvious, even here the activity reaches to your
food and sex centres. We are sustained on food and sex, and this
forms our impressions of what is necessary and pleasurabie.
This very conditioning (sanskar) is firmly rooted in all our actions.
And so the impression is made upon your mind that the soul
desires the things of this world. Remember, whatever your
conditionings are the activity corresponding to those
conditionings is always present in you. My boy, what thoughts
made the Rishis prescribe charity and beni- ficence as duties for
your guidance ? You will not be able to determine that with your
intelligence. In short, whatever deeds the self-realized saints
prescribe for you personally, these alone will help you to attain
the knowledge of reality. Whatever virtuous deeds you perform
with your own intelligence will always have ego in them. For this
reason, all people, from kings and emperors to ordinary house-
holders, must have the advice of the self-realized Rishis to
perform every good deed.
My child, distinctions must be made according to the
individual in every instance, because all people do not have the
same conditioning (sanskara). Therefore, the same will not
prove effective in every case. For this reason, according to
different disciples, different methods of devotion and worship
have been prescribed and various sadhanas have been taught,
all to explain the single atma-tattwa. Whatever these self-
realized Rishis prescribe for a particular person, for that person
alone it is necessary, and it may be improper for others. For this
reason, the arrangements made by the Rishis will be proper for
all Rishis, but for others it may be.a mistake to follow their
example. My boy, how many commentaries on the scriptures
would be made if every individual, according to his own imagi-
nation (kalpana) studied and explained the Rishis’ introductions
concerning worldly affairs ? There is no limit to that. You wanted
to know whether any effort could be made to attain self-
realization while living in the world. All ihat 1 have said about the
fitness to receive Mool Mantra applies to the first and best
recipient. The number of such deserving persons is not large.
One must make efforts and practise sadhana even to become a
deserving recipient. You should rerrember that of all the
Maharshis that you see, the majority of them practised devotion
and worship while living in the world, and at the end became most
deserving of Mool Mantra and attained self-realization. My boy,
the Maharshis never worry about good or bad in any of their
worldly actions. Those who consider this world to be real are the
only ones who are anxious about good and bad. Nothing in the
world is an object of a Maharshi’s concern. Now, whatever a
disciples’s thoughts are at a particular time, those are the
thoughts with which the Maharshi will attract him towards his own
real self, luring him from his worldly engagements. This is their
natural work. Due to the temperament of the Rishis, benevolence
towards the people is their way of life. In this way, when a disciple
understands a certain action to be his duty, and this
understanding is so strong and deep-rooted that he cannot
dispense with it, then the saints direct him to treat that very action
as his duty. Actually, whatever you consider to be your duty in
your worldly life will not, by being performed, do any harm to your
sadhana. But if you are always engaged in this work, thinking
about it incessantly, you cannot at the end become deserving of
Mool Mantra. You should do whatever work you think to be your
duty. But, at other times, when you are at leisure, if food and sex
engage your thoughts, reflections, and discussions, then you
must admit worldly objects to be so real to you, that you cannot
leave them even for a moment and think of any other subject.
Being enjoined to your body, you may devote as much time of the
day to your work or business as you think necessary. But when
you are free from your work and your business, during your
leisure, it is proper for you to think : ‘I, who do all these things with
such pride and self- importance, who am I ? My wants are not
removed by any of these things. Then what actually is my want ?
What will be the result of all that I am doing’ ? While thinking about
such things, if you firmly make up your mind to practise Mool
Mantra three times a day for at least half an hour at a time, that is,
one and a half hours altogether, even then Mool Mantra can be
given to you. I do not stop you from doing anything your nature
requires. I only wish that when you are free from work, when you
relax, that you ponder over what I say, and practise Mool Mantra
fully concentrated for an hour and a half or two hours. This is all I
want. If you are unable to do even this much, even w h e n
you are free from the work which your body demands, if
even in your leisure time you are involved in thoughts about
food and sex, then it is not proper in any way to give Mool Mantra
to you. Those who keep my company when they are free from the
affairs and business required by their bodies, who ponder over
and follow what I say, to them I can give Mool Mantra. Because,
in time they will become completely detached from the business
demanded by their bodies, and then they will deserve this, and
can attain self realization. But when people are free from their
work and even then they are busy thinking about food and sex, all
such people are completely undeserving to receive Mool Mantra.