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When all names and forms have been given up, the real is with you. You need not seek it. Plurality and diversity are the play of the mind only. Reality is one.
The mind can only attack you with some ideas about yourself that you have not said goodbye to yet.
Bhagavan once said to me: The one who limits the Self by believing himself to be the body and the mind has ‘killed’ his own Self. For killing the Self he has to be punished. The punishment is birth and death and continuous misery.
Q.: Is the ending of misery determined by prarabdha karma, or can we bring it nearer by personal effort?
Annamalai Swami: The misery comes to an end only by realizing the Self, not by any other means.
Q: Can this happen at any time?
AS: Here and now you are already the Self. You don’t need time to realize it, all you need is correct understanding. Each moment you identify yourself with the body and the mind, you are going in the direction of ego and misery. The moment you give up that identification, you are moving towards your real Self, towards happiness.
Q: … If I try to generate this feeling ‘I am the Self’’ it will not be the real thing. It will be just another idea in the mind. Can thinking about this idea really help me?
AS: When I say, ‘Meditate on the Self’ I am asking you to be the Self, not think about it. Be aware of what remains when thoughts stop. Be aware of the consciousness that is the origin of all your thoughts. Be that consciousness. Feel that this is what you really are. If you do this you are meditating on the Self. But if you cannot stabilize in that consciousness because your vasanas are too strong and too active, it is beneficial to hold onto the thought, ‘I am the Self; I am everything.’ If you meditate in this way you will not be cooperating with the vasanas that are blocking your Self-awareness. If you don’t cooperate with them, sooner or later they are bound to leave you.
If this method doesn’t appeal to you, then just watch the mind with full attention. Whenever the mind wanders, become aware of it. See how thoughts connect with each other and watch how this ghost called mind catches hold of all your thoughts, saying, ‘This is my thought.‘ Watch the ways of the mind without identifying with them in any way. If you give your mind your full, detached attention, you begin to understand the futility of all mental activities. Watch the mind wandering here and there, seeking out useless and unnecessary things or ideas, which will ultimately only create misery for itself. Watching the mind gives us a knowledge of its inner processes. It gives us an incentive to stay detached from all our thoughts. Ultimately, if we try hard enough, it gives us the ability to remain as consciousness, unaffected by transient thoughts.
– ‘Living by the Words of Bhagavan’, p. 283
Q.: Is the ending of misery determined by prarabdha karma, or can we bring it nearer by personal effort?
Annamalai Swami: The misery comes to an end only by realizing the Self, not by any other means.
Q: Can this happen at any time?
AS: Here and now you are already the Self. You don’t need time to realize it, all you need is correct understanding. Each moment you identify yourself with the body and the mind, you are going in the direction of ego and misery. The moment you give up that identification, you are moving towards your real Self, towards happiness.
Q: … If I try to generate this feeling ‘I am the Self’’ it will not be the real thing. It will be just another idea in the mind. Can thinking about this idea really help me?
AS: When I say, ‘Meditate on the Self’ I am asking you to be the Self, not think about it. Be aware of what remains when thoughts stop. Be aware of the consciousness that is the origin of all your thoughts. Be that consciousness. Feel that this is what you really are. If you do this you are meditating on the Self. But if you cannot stabilize in that consciousness because your vasanas are too strong and too active, it is beneficial to hold onto the thought, ‘I am the Self; I am everything.’ If you meditate in this way you will not be cooperating with the vasanas that are blocking your Self-awareness. If you don’t cooperate with them, sooner or later they are bound to leave you.
If this method doesn’t appeal to you, then just watch the mind with full attention. Whenever the mind wanders, become aware of it. See how thoughts connect with each other and watch how this ghost called mind catches hold of all your thoughts, saying, ‘This is my thought.‘ Watch the ways of the mind without identifying with them in any way. If you give your mind your full, detached attention, you begin to understand the futility of all mental activities. Watch the mind wandering here and there, seeking out useless and unnecessary things or ideas, which will ultimately only create misery for itself. Watching the mind gives us a knowledge of its inner processes. It gives us an incentive to stay detached from all our thoughts. Ultimately, if we try hard enough, it gives us the ability to remain as consciousness, unaffected by transient thoughts.
– ‘Living by the Words of Bhagavan’, p. 283
What do you want to be when you grow up? (Robert's childhood)
When I was twelve years old I used to ask my mother, “What am I doing here? I don’t belong here. Why am I here?” And my mother used to say, “You’re here to be like everybody else, to get a job, to have a profession. To go into this world and make something out of yourself”. And she used to retaliate, “Do you know what you want to be when you grow up?” I used to say, “Nothing”. (laughter) I don’t think that I knew what I was talking about at that time.
But anyway after a while she thought that we should go see uncle Louie. (laughter) Uncle Louie was a physician. And she told him what I was saying, what I was doing. So he said, “I’ll take care of this”. He gave me a physical examination, everything was fine. And again he asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I told him, “I don’t care what I am when I grow up I just want to know what I’m doing here? What am I doing here?” And he asked, “You mean on this earth?” So I said, “No in this body? What am I doing in this body? I feel like I’m in prison. I feel as if I’m confined to something”. So he looked at me and said something to my mother about a psychiatrist. (laughter)
And the next day my mother took me to see a lady psychiatrist. She was a German lady from Austria. Her name was Sonya Leichenstein or Leichenstine. My mum told her the story. What I’ve been doing and she took me into her office. There was a nice couch there I was lying down on. I enjoyed it. She asked me, “So you don’t think you are the body? You think you’re someone else?” And she giggled, “You know Freud used to think the same thing”. So I said, “Who was Freud?” She said, “Never mind”. (laughter) Again she asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up”, and I asked her, “why is everybody asking me this question? There is really nothing I care to be when I grow up at all. I just feel confined to my body. I feel as if I’m in prison. I don’t belong here”. So she said, “Don’t worry about that I will get the little man out of here out of your body. There is a little man in your body that has to come out and we will work on this”.
So I went to see her every Friday. I loved it due to the fact that my mother gave me some extra money and I would not have to go to school that day or half a day at school. And I was able to ride on the bus. I really enjoyed those times. I went to her for about six months. She finally called my mother and recommended another psychiatrist, a man. These people kept on asking me, “What do I want to be when I grow up?” So I went to see this man. He was a different psychiatrist. I really enjoyed going to him also. Finally I got it. And one day he asked me, “Robert do you know what you want to be when you grow up?” I said, “Yes I want to be a neurotic”. (students laugh) And that was the end of my visits with psychiatrists.
Q: You were cured.
Robert continues: Now what does all of this have to do with our talk today? Absolutely nothing. (laughter) What is the moral of this story? It has no moral whatsoever. Just something I thought I’d throw in.
Robert Adams
What If I Don’t Awaken Before My Death? – October 4, 1992
When I was twelve years old I used to ask my mother, “What am I doing here? I don’t belong here. Why am I here?” And my mother used to say, “You’re here to be like everybody else, to get a job, to have a profession. To go into this world and make something out of yourself”. And she used to retaliate, “Do you know what you want to be when you grow up?” I used to say, “Nothing”. (laughter) I don’t think that I knew what I was talking about at that time.
But anyway after a while she thought that we should go see uncle Louie. (laughter) Uncle Louie was a physician. And she told him what I was saying, what I was doing. So he said, “I’ll take care of this”. He gave me a physical examination, everything was fine. And again he asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I told him, “I don’t care what I am when I grow up I just want to know what I’m doing here? What am I doing here?” And he asked, “You mean on this earth?” So I said, “No in this body? What am I doing in this body? I feel like I’m in prison. I feel as if I’m confined to something”. So he looked at me and said something to my mother about a psychiatrist. (laughter)
And the next day my mother took me to see a lady psychiatrist. She was a German lady from Austria. Her name was Sonya Leichenstein or Leichenstine. My mum told her the story. What I’ve been doing and she took me into her office. There was a nice couch there I was lying down on. I enjoyed it. She asked me, “So you don’t think you are the body? You think you’re someone else?” And she giggled, “You know Freud used to think the same thing”. So I said, “Who was Freud?” She said, “Never mind”. (laughter) Again she asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up”, and I asked her, “why is everybody asking me this question? There is really nothing I care to be when I grow up at all. I just feel confined to my body. I feel as if I’m in prison. I don’t belong here”. So she said, “Don’t worry about that I will get the little man out of here out of your body. There is a little man in your body that has to come out and we will work on this”.
So I went to see her every Friday. I loved it due to the fact that my mother gave me some extra money and I would not have to go to school that day or half a day at school. And I was able to ride on the bus. I really enjoyed those times. I went to her for about six months. She finally called my mother and recommended another psychiatrist, a man. These people kept on asking me, “What do I want to be when I grow up?” So I went to see this man. He was a different psychiatrist. I really enjoyed going to him also. Finally I got it. And one day he asked me, “Robert do you know what you want to be when you grow up?” I said, “Yes I want to be a neurotic”. (students laugh) And that was the end of my visits with psychiatrists.
Q: You were cured.
Robert continues: Now what does all of this have to do with our talk today? Absolutely nothing. (laughter) What is the moral of this story? It has no moral whatsoever. Just something I thought I’d throw in.
Robert Adams
What If I Don’t Awaken Before My Death? – October 4, 1992
If you want to become full, let yourself be empty.
If you want to be given everything, give everything up.
If you realize that you have enough, you are truly rich.
When there is no desire, all things are at peace.
In the pursuit of knowledge, every day something is added;
In the practice of Tao, every day something is dropped.
The Sage’s power is like this;
He lets all things come and go effortlessly, without desire.
He never expects results, thus he is never disappointed.
He is never disappointed, thus his spirit never grows old.
If you want to be given everything, give everything up.
If you realize that you have enough, you are truly rich.
When there is no desire, all things are at peace.
In the pursuit of knowledge, every day something is added;
In the practice of Tao, every day something is dropped.
The Sage’s power is like this;
He lets all things come and go effortlessly, without desire.
He never expects results, thus he is never disappointed.
He is never disappointed, thus his spirit never grows old.
Sometimes God challenges you
to find strength you don't have.
Only like this will you go beyond your imagined limits.
You must be pushed so far that you are forced to be humble.
Only then,
when your pride and arrogance are crushed,
will you discover muscles that are not yours.
You will find and use the muscles of God.
When you completely abandon yourself,
your ego,
this miracle
becomes possible.
to find strength you don't have.
Only like this will you go beyond your imagined limits.
You must be pushed so far that you are forced to be humble.
Only then,
when your pride and arrogance are crushed,
will you discover muscles that are not yours.
You will find and use the muscles of God.
When you completely abandon yourself,
your ego,
this miracle
becomes possible.
The most effective and auspicious spiritual practices are the ones that leave you without identity.
When you lose a loved one, you suffer. but if you know how to look deeply, you have a chance to realize that his or her nature is truly the nature of no birth, no death.
There is manifestation and there is the cessation of manifestation in order to have another manifestation.
You have to be very keen and very alert in order to recognize the new manifestation of just one person. But with practice and with effort you can do it.
So, taking the hand of someone who knows the practice, together do walking meditation.
Pay attention to all the leaves, the flowers, the birds and the dewdrops.
If you can stop and look deeply, you will be able to recognize your beloved one manifesting again and again in different forms.
You will again embrace the joy of life.
There is manifestation and there is the cessation of manifestation in order to have another manifestation.
You have to be very keen and very alert in order to recognize the new manifestation of just one person. But with practice and with effort you can do it.
So, taking the hand of someone who knows the practice, together do walking meditation.
Pay attention to all the leaves, the flowers, the birds and the dewdrops.
If you can stop and look deeply, you will be able to recognize your beloved one manifesting again and again in different forms.
You will again embrace the joy of life.
The usefulness of a cup is in its emptiness.
Continue practicing until you see yourself in the cruelest person on Earth, in the child starving, in the political prisoner. Practice until you recognize yourself in everyone in the supermarket, on the street corner, in a concentration camp, on a leaf, in a dewdrop. Meditate until you see yourself in a speck of dust in a distant galaxy. See and listen with the whole of your being. If you are fully present, the rain of Dharma will water the deepest seeds in your consciousness, and tomorrow, while you are washing the dishes or looking at the blue sky, that seed will spring forth, and love and understanding will appear as a beautiful flower.
When you say ‘I’ - something says ‘I.’ I did this, I believe, no I don’t agree, I want. Watch this ‘I,’ not what it wants. The idea you have of who you are is suffering about ideas it has of itself. Watch this ‘I’ sense. Who will watch it?
The more morals and taboos there are, the more cruelty afflicts people; The more guns and knives there are, the more factions divide people; The more arts and skills there are, the more change obsoletes people; The more laws and taxes there are, the more theft corrupts people.
What is right is not always popular and what is popular is not always right.
Meet you own Self. Be with your own Self, listen to it, obey it, cherish it, keep it in mind ceaselessly. You need no other guide.
Any thought that you have reached or are going to reach that state is false. Whatever happens in consciousness is purely imaginary, an hallucination.
Thoughts are impediments to seeing your own face.
If one accepts that whatsoever is happening is as per God’s will or Cosmic law then there will not be any complaint or frustration with life. But this acceptance will also come to us as per God’s will.
Once you establish a connection with Arunachala, it will keep on pulling you towards it. You cannot resist.
Know that this universe is nothing but a dream bluff of nature to test your consciousness of immortality.
It is possible to be in both worlds. It's like you're in this world, but you don't belong to it in quite the same way... you're not pulled into the dramas of life.
We meet ourselves time and again in a thousand disguises on the path of life.
No tongue can tell Your secret
for the measure of the word obscures Your nature.
But the gift of the ear
is that it hears
what the tongue cannot tell.
for the measure of the word obscures Your nature.
But the gift of the ear
is that it hears
what the tongue cannot tell.
All of your desires, all of your needs, all of your wants are already within you, waiting to be fulfilled and expressed.
- Ponder this.
All of the Masters, the teachers, the Saints, the Sages that you have worshipped all of your life, whether it's Buddha, Christ, Muhammad, Moses, whomever, have always been within you, waiting to be expressed.
- Ponder this.
The only problem you have, that does not allow these Sages, your desires, your wants to be expressed through you, is your noisy mind.
- Ponder this.
Whatever you see in your life right now, good or bad, is a result of your thoughts and your belief.
It has no other reality.
It is not permanent.
- Ponder this.
- Ponder this.
All of the Masters, the teachers, the Saints, the Sages that you have worshipped all of your life, whether it's Buddha, Christ, Muhammad, Moses, whomever, have always been within you, waiting to be expressed.
- Ponder this.
The only problem you have, that does not allow these Sages, your desires, your wants to be expressed through you, is your noisy mind.
- Ponder this.
Whatever you see in your life right now, good or bad, is a result of your thoughts and your belief.
It has no other reality.
It is not permanent.
- Ponder this.
I am Brahman.
When I make a statement like that, I’m not speaking about Robert.
I am encompasses all of you.
I am, is Brahman.
Therefore when you admit to yourself that you are Brahman, you are saying that you're the whole universe.
And something has to give.
You really don't know what you're saying, you don't understand what you're saying.
Say this to yourself.
See how it feels,
I am Brahman.
I am Brahman".
You are declaring the highest truth in history, the highest truth in the world.
There is nothing that comes after that.
There is absolutely nothing to say after that.
When you make the declaration, "I am Brahman".
Those are mighty words.
The whole universe is Brahman.
Yet what we call Brahman is not a thing, not a place.
It is complete emptiness.
So when you say, "I am Brahman", you're saying you're emptiness.
Feel this in every bone in your body, if you have any bones in your body.
When I make a statement like that, I’m not speaking about Robert.
I am encompasses all of you.
I am, is Brahman.
Therefore when you admit to yourself that you are Brahman, you are saying that you're the whole universe.
And something has to give.
You really don't know what you're saying, you don't understand what you're saying.
Say this to yourself.
See how it feels,
I am Brahman.
I am Brahman".
You are declaring the highest truth in history, the highest truth in the world.
There is nothing that comes after that.
There is absolutely nothing to say after that.
When you make the declaration, "I am Brahman".
Those are mighty words.
The whole universe is Brahman.
Yet what we call Brahman is not a thing, not a place.
It is complete emptiness.
So when you say, "I am Brahman", you're saying you're emptiness.
Feel this in every bone in your body, if you have any bones in your body.
Beings
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