यस्मिन् द्यौः पृथिवी चान्तरिक्षमोतं
मनः सह प्राणैश्च सर्वैः ।
तमेवैकं जानथ आत्मानमन्या वाचो
विमुञ्चथामृतस्यैष सेतुः ॥ ५॥
yasmin dyauḥ pṛthivī cāntarikṣamotaṃ
manaḥ saha prāṇaiśca sarvaiḥ .
tamevaikaṃ jānatha ātmānamanyā vāco
vimuñcathāmṛtasyaiṣa setuḥ .. 5..
In Him are woven heaven, earth and the space between and the mind with all the sense-organs. Know that non-dual Atman alone and give up all other talk. He is the bridge to Immortality.
Commentary:
It is that on which space itself is fixed, which is the foundation of the whole Earth. The entire space is an object in front of that subtler, larger-than-space Reality. And all things, including the mind and the pranas, are fixed on that Reality. That alone should be the goal of your life. Tam evaikaṁ jānatha ātmānam: Know it as the deepest reality of your own heart, the Atman.
Do not speak too much. Anya vāco vimuñcatha: When you speak, speak only about the Atman. Do not speak about anything else. All other words are weariness of speech. Therefore, concentrate yourself on this great ideal of your life, and mind your business, as they say. Do not engage yourself in other kinds of business in this world. This should be your only business, your only aim, and nothing else should attract your attention. Amṛtasyaiṣa setuḥ: This sadhana, this practice, if it can be carried on successfully, will be the bridge to Immortality.
Sri Ramakrishna Says —
“One day, in that state of divine intoxication, I went to the bathing-ghat on the Ganges at Baranagore. There I saw Jaya Mukherji repeating the name of God; but his mind was on something else. I went up and slapped him twice on the cheeks.
“At one time Rani Rasmani was staying in the temple garden. She came to the shrine of the Divine Mother, as she frequently did when I worshipped Kali, and asked me to sing a song or two. On this occasion, while I was singing, I noticed she was sorting the flowers for worship absent-mindedly. At once I slapped her on the cheeks. She became quite embarrassed and sat there with folded hands.
“Alarmed at this state of mind myself, I said to my cousin Haladhari: ‘Just see my nature! How can I get rid of it?’ After praying to the Divine Mother for some time with great yearning, I was able to shake off this habit.
“When one gets into such a state of mind, one doesn’t enjoy any conversation but that about God. I used to weep when I heard people talk about worldly matters. When I accompanied Mathur Babu on a pilgrimage, we spent a few days in Benares at Raja Babu’s house. One day I was seated in the drawing-room with Mathur Babu, Raja Babu, and others. Hearing them talk about various worldly things, such as their business losses and so forth, I wept bitterly and said to the Divine Mother: ‘Mother, where have You brought me? I was much better off in the temple garden at Dakshineswar. Here I am in a place where I must hear about “woman and gold”. But at Dakshineswar I could avoid it.'”
…… They (Narendra and M.) were talking thus when Sri Ramakrishna came to them and asked with a smile, “Well, what are you talking about?”
NARENDRA: “I have been asking M. about the boys in the schools. The conduct of students nowadays isn’t all that it should be.”
The Master became grave and said to M. rather seriously: “This kind of conversation is not good. It isn’t desirable to indulge in any talk but talk of God. You are their senior, and you are intelligent. You should not have encouraged them to talk about such matters.”
Narendra was then about nineteen years old, and M. about twenty-eight. Thus admonished, M. felt embarrassed, and the others also fell silent. …..
…….Shortly before midnight Narendra and the other devotees lay down on a bed made on the floor of the Master’s room.
At dawn some of the devotees were up. They saw the Master, naked as a child, pacing up and down the room, repeating the names of the various gods and goddesses. His voice was sweet as nectar. Now he would look at the Ganges, now stop in front of the pictures hanging on the wall and bow down before them, chanting all the while the holy names in his sweet voice. He chanted: “Veda, Purana, Tantra; Gita, Gayatri; Bhagavata, Bhakta, Bhagavan.” Referring to the Gita, he repeated many times, “Tagi, tagi, tagi.” (This word is formed by reversing the letters of “Gita”. “Tagi” means “one who has renounced”. Renunciation is the import of this sacred book.) Now and then he would say: “O Mother, Thou art verily Brahman, and Thou art verily Sakti. Thou art Purusha and Thou art Prakriti. Thou art Virat. Thou art the Absolute, and Thou dost manifest Thyself as the Relative. Thou art verily the twenty-four cosmic principles.” (Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—–
MASTER (with a smile): “Do you know my attitude? Books, scriptures, and things like that only point out the way to reach God. After finding the way, what more need is there of books and scriptures? Then comes the time for action.
“A man received a letter from home informing him that certain presents were to be sent to his relatives. The names of the articles were given in the letter. As he was about to go shopping for them, he found that the letter was missing. He began anxiously to search for it, several others joining in the search. For a long time they continued to search. When at last the letter was discovered, his joy knew no bounds. With great eagerness he opened the letter and read it. It said that he was to buy five seers of sweets, a piece of cloth, and a few other things. Then he did not need the letter any more, for it had served its purpose. Putting it aside, he went out to buy the things. How long is such a letter necessary? As long as its contents are not known. When the contents are known one proceeds to carry out the directions.
“In the scriptures you will find the way to realise God. But after getting all the information about the path, you must begin to work. Only then can you attain your goal. (Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—–
During my youth I had read the philosophies of Kant, Hegel, and other great philosophers. One day I said to the Master: “Sir, what do you know about philosophy? Have you read the works of Kant and Hegel?” He replied: “What are you saying? Throw away all those books. Knowledge of God is not in any book. Those books are all products of ignorance.” What a great statement the Master made! Later, finding no way out, I gave up arguing. In the beginning we need faith for God-realization. — Swami Vijnanananda (Source: God Lived with Them)
Svetasvatara Upanishad 6.11-6.15
- The non-dual and resplendent Lord is hidden in all beings. All-pervading, the inmost Self of all creatures, the impeller to actions, abiding in all things, He is the Witness, the Animator and the Absolute, free from gunas.
- There is a non-dual Ruler of the actionless many; He makes the one seed manifold. Eternal happiness belongs to the wise, who perceive Him within themselves-and not to others.
- He is the Eternal among the eternal, the Conscious among the conscious and though non-dual, fulfils the desires of many. He who has known Him, the luminous Lord, the Great Cause, to be realised by Knowledge (Samkhya) and yoga, is freed from all fetters.
- The sun does not shine there, nor the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings-much less this fire. He shining, everything shines after Him. By his light all this is lighted.
- In this universe the Swan, the Supreme Self alone exists. It is He who, as fire, abides in the water. Only by knowing Him does one pass over death, There is no other way to reach the Supreme Goal. (Svetasvatara Upanishad 6.11-6.15)