AvadhootaDatta Peetham

Jaya Guru Datta

Sri Ganesaya Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha
Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha

Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Sadgurubhyo Namaha

asato ma sadgamaya
tamaso ma jyotirgamaya
mrityor ma amrtam gamaya
Om Santissantissantihi

Please lead me from untruth to Truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality. May there be peace.

Yoga Vasishtha Dhyana Slokas:
yatassarvāṇi bhūtāni pratibhānti sthitāni ca
yatraivōpaśamaṁ yānti tasmai satyātmanē namaḥ || 1
jñātā jñānaṁ tathā jñēyaṁ draṣṭādarśana dr̥śyabhūḥ
kartā hētuḥ kriyā yasmāt tasmai jñaptyātmanē namaḥ || 2
sphuranti sīkarā yasmāt ānanandasyāṁbarē vanau
sarvēṣām jīvanam tasmai brahmānandātmanē namaḥ || 3

Om santissantissantihi

Vasishtha has explained the concept of fortune; well and good. He began with the statement that there is nothing like fortune. Then he concluded with the words that the actions of past lives occurs as fortune. How are the two correlated? Are not the two statements contradictory? What is the reconciliation between the two statements?

The ignorant attribute a color to the sky. But the learned know that the sky is colorless. Similarly, the scholars know that there is no such thing as fortune. It has no form or validity.

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When people speak about good fortune or bad fortune, it is only for mere conversation and for giving solace to those who are in grief. But the concept of fortune has no basis whatsoever. Only effort or deliberate action exists. It alone yields all the results that we experience. Vasishtha is negating the existence of fortune.
We call these things fortune erroneously because such a thing does not even exist. All that happens is as a result of our own past actions. Therefore Karma itself is fortune. There is no other thing called fortune.

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These good or bad results have occurred to us as consequences of our own past actions. Karma is itself fortune. There is nothing other than karma. This is Vasishtha's upadesha.

Sri Rama raises a question.

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Sri Rama listened carefully and then aired his doubts. Vasisththa said: Rama, you have all the answers. Yet, you have asked. Therefore, I will explain to you again. This is all actually for our benefit. We have to listen, at least because one as great as Rama Himself has listened to these answers and explanations.

Vasishtha said: There is no such thing as luck. I will clarify further so that in your mind the truth gets established. The understanding has to be firm. It should not waver. Devotion is there. That is grace of God. But it should be strengthened. Similarly, your grasp of this issue should become firm.

O Raghava, your doubt is valid. It shows that Rama has been listening intently to the words of Guru. We must learn to listen to Guru the way Rama has listened, paying full attention.

Vasishtha said: Rama, listen carefully. I will clarify your doubt. You know the answer and do not really need any further explanation. Still, I will tell you in greater detail.

This explanation is more for our benefit than for Rama's benefit. Our Sadguru Sri Swamiji laments many times that we do not listen to words of wisdom unless Swamiji Himself sits there in the hall. If He leaves, all the devotees leave. They are not willing to stay and listen. So He stays. Here, Sri Rama stays and listens, so that we will pay attention and listen to the precious words of Sage Vasishtha.

Despite my detailed explanation, you still do not seem to be convinced firmly. Continuous regurgitation and practice are required to firmly establish the understanding of a concept or an idea.

If devotion occurs it is good. But it should be strengthened with daily practice.

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What was earlier hinted at, is now being explained in greater detail. Karma is a word that we have used frequently. What is the purpose of doing karma? Why do we engage in actions? Why are actions performed in a specific way? So many people are born in this world. Not everyone behaves or acts in the same way. Each person is different. The children born to the same parents are all different from one another. Each one's mind is colored or flavored by certain tendencies and those tendencies determine each person's behavior, interests and actions. These are inborn tendencies. People are born with those. The tendencies, like odors stick to the individuals and follow them from the previous lifetimes. Based on those tendencies, the different actions are performed by the different individuals. These vasanas or odors adhere to each individual and they get transformed into actions. The thoughts, resolutions, feelings, ambitions, unresolved issues, and experiences of past lives are all carried forward with each individual. These are invisible.

This subtle concept is introduced to us here. These inborn tendencies stick to each individual and travel with him from lifetime to lifetime. Now this is being explained to us in detail. What causes birth? How does a mind work? What prompts actions? Why are actions different and specific to each individual? How to get rid of these actions? What is stronger? Are these tendencies stronger than anything else? Are they impossible to overcome? Will they always have the upperhand? Are we helpless against them?
The answers are given ahead.

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The tendencies that we are born with, are the ones that direct us through our lives. That is why we are urged to follow Sadguru. He will show us the way out. Seeking the fleeting pleasures of the world, we may do a wrong action. That wrong action will capture us in the form of a Vasana and will trouble us. When will it trouble us? It may trouble us in this lifetime or in the next lifetime. The odor that has stuck to us like this becomes us. It is not separate from us. It is inseparable from us. We become identified with it. Sastras use this term Vasana in a different way. People are driven by these Vasanas.

Here, a new angle is introduced. What is the cause for performing karma? So many are born in this world. Even the children born of the same parents do not act the same way. The tendency of each mind dictates that person's actions. This tendency of the mind travels with us through repeated lifetimes. Our past life's flavors stick to us and get transformed into present day actions. All of our past desires, intentions, attitudes, and aptitudes get carried over from past lives along with the souls that travel through different bodies.

This is a deep science. How is the soul born inside a body? Is tendency of the greatest force? Can it be conquered?

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With whatever tendency we are born, that tendency drives us through life. That is why we are urged to follow the advice of Guru and not get influenced by our past tendency and pursue transient comforts of this world in this lifetime.

When we take a bath, when we apply fragrance to our bodies, the bad odors get destroyed. Similarly, with good deeds, holy baths, and penance, the results of bad past deeds will get voided.

When does a tendency take the form of action? In infancy, youth, old age, or after death? A man with an aptitude for sports will have that tendency remain dormant during childhood but it will drive the person towards the fulfillment of that inclination as he matures. The person's train of thought, attitude and interests will be as per the past tendencies brought into this lifetime. Other than these tendencies, nothing else remains with us. The attitudes we bring with us are very strong. They alone drive us throughout our lives.

Therefore one must increase the Satva Guna. It has the power to destroy the past vasanas/tendencies. When we develop Satva Guna, it can overcome the force of the past tendencies. Speak the truth, do not covet, be good, perform austerities, give charity, do penance, follow Guru, and do mantra japa to strengthen the Satva Guna.

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A person chooses to go to the place where his predetermined desires will get fulfilled, be it a city, village, or town. Each has his own tendencies, and previous intentions that drive him to get them to be satisfied. Strong urges are there which are the driving forces in life. Many such actions happen involuntarily by the force of the previous tendencies.

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Out of the actions that we perform, some are done with strong convictions and some are mere casual actions. It is the actions done with strong conviction that truly affect the personality, and not the mindless activities that one indulges in. For example, a man traveling from village to village kept touching the plants in the rice fields inadvertently. The action was not necessary. He casually touched the plants. Such meaningless actions do not have much effect. But the travel itself from one specific village to the next is a specific action made with a definite intention. This is the main action. This action will carry a lasting effect. It will get registered in the mind. It gets saved and will exert a lasting effect. One must be careful about such major decisions. Minor gestures or actions may not have any great influence. Only the main actions carried out with a strong urge are the ones that stick to the mind and exert a strong influence. some of these may be good and some may be bad. One should be very cautious in engaging in such actions. These actions appears as if they have come from nowhere, as if they are random like fortune that occurs inexplicably.

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The actions performed by each individual are what determine the personality of the person. The past tendencies take the shape of actions now. The mind under the influence of the past flavors induces all present actions.

To destroy the incidence of rebirth, the mind has to be destroyed. The mind is the one that determines the person. Manam means manas, the mind. Our mind causes our birth. Because the mind exists, we exist.

Mind is the seed for birth. The seed is the source of a tree. It is very small for a banyan tree or a aswattha tree. The subtle mind is the sources of our entire existence, including this body and the entire creation that a person becomes aware of. Our entire world is the creation of our own mind. Our world emerges from the seed called our mind. Our world exists because of our mind. For you the world exists because of your own mind. The world that does not exist for you, is a world that does not matter to you. It is pointless to argue that whether or not you experience the world, the world still exists. Such an argument is without basis. It may sound as if the person who speaks like that is unselfish and objective. But it is not so. One must be concerned with self when considering this concept and understand that creation exists only as long as one's own mind exists. The existence of others and the world, depends entirely on the existence of one's own mind. In this regard, one's thinking must be self-centered while trying to understand Brahma Jnana.

People argue: My forefathers are dead and gone and yet, this world continues to exist. Similarly, when I die also, this world will continue to exist. Therefore, why should I try to get rid of this world from my consciousness or awareness?
Such notions are wrong.

People argur: Unhappiness is a fact of existence. It will not be removed. Therefore, why should I try to be rid of it?
This is not a proper argument.
Would anyone ask the question: Why should I eat? They would not. Each creature strives to end its own hunger. It is the right thing to do.
The ignorant ones say: This world is always like this. Why should I worry about it?
Just because others are unhappy should you also be unhappy? Each one must strive to satisfy his own hunger. Do not say that the world will still exist, whether or not your particular world exists. Such thinking is wrong.

When the mind merges with the Paramatma, you have become one with the Paramatma. To achieve this state, O Rama, you must do sadhana. Surrender your mind. Develop and strengthen your devotion. It will benefit you.
Mind itself is the individual.

Without the mind, no sensible actions are performed. One would be acting like a madman, with actions getting performed without intention. It is insanity. Such a person may eat dirt or leaves. He may remain dirty. The proper way of doing things is not followed by him. Insanity is the malfunctioning of the mind. His mind is crooked and therefore he suffers.

Our tendencies have brought us here.

A madman's troubles are greater than a sane person's. Mind itself is the person. The individual and his mind are one and the same. The mind is what determines whether a person is successful in life or not, whether a person excels in education or not, whether life is led properly or not.

We tell students to pay attention while studying. Studying without concentration for hours on end will have no effect. In half an hour a focused mind can grasp a great deal. The mind has the greatest power to understand things that are most subtle.

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Now, the concept of mind is introduced. How does the mind function? What are tendencies?

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There is no such thing as luck. Karma is luck. When you act, you get a result. That is fortune. When you do not perform the required actions, you are deprived of the desired result. Fortune does not throw rewards in your lap out of nowhere. It just does not happen. Whatever you get now is the result of your past karma. Karma is the same as fortune or luck. Mind is action. Without mind, action cannot be performed.

See how beautifully Vasishtha is leading systematically from one subtle topic to the next. One thing is leading to another. Mind itself is the individual.

In conclusion, everything that exists is the mind. The individual has no attributes, the individual soul and the supreme soul are without attributes. The two are one and the same. Now we are gradually being taken one step ahead.

In Tripura Vaibhavam, Sri Swamiji has sung a song: "Abhinna nijaatma paraatma vishudhha svaroopa viraajitaa tvam hi." The entire essence of the Yoga Vasishtha is contained in that song. Swamiji has explained it so beautifully in the song. We sing the song effortlessly.

Paramaatma is great. When you bow before Him with the Namaskara gesture, you are indicating and establishing the oneness between the two; yourself and the Supreme Self. That the two are identical is acknowledged. The heart-lotus is the seat of Paramatma. The seeker prays for that experience of oneness. Namaskara symbolizes the oneness of you and I - it establishes the identity between Jeevatma and Paramatma. Keeping the palms in front of the chest, the forehead, or the crown chakra, the seeker prays for the grace of the Almighty. Heart lotus is jeevatma. Jnana chakra is forehead. Paramatma is at the Sahasrara. the oneness of the individual and the supreme are established here and prayer is offered for that experience.

Based on this premise, it is proved that there is no such thing as fortune.

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This mind is the form of every creature that comes into existence. Wherever you are, whatever you are thinking of, all that is Mind. The entire world is nothing but the mind. It is so subtle. Mind is the creature that exists. All actions are producing results that we experience. No one is to blame for any of our experiences or troubles. No other person is responsible for our unhappiness. Our own karma comes back to us as the circumstances that we face.

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Manaha, chittam, vasana, karma, daivam are all terms we have used. It is extremely difficult to define the individual entity. The mind is called fortune; karma is called fortune. The individual is called fortune. But beyond these there is no separate thing called fortune or luck.

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Those who realize that their own karma is their fortune, are the ones who succeed in their determined efforts.

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Rama, I have explained many things to you. I have given you many examples to prove to you this point. Therefore, Rama, perform Sadhana. Pray to Sadguru for the strength to do relentless, continuous sadhana. Vasishtha blesses Rama that if He follows this advice He will be successful.

Our efforts must bear good fruits always. That is the best prayer which prays to Sadguru to grant the wisdom to perform sadhana and the strength to carry it out constantly. Our efforts may not always yield discernible fruits.

Some may get discouraged that their persistent efforts have failed to yield the expected results. But in due course the results will come. Vasishtha blesses Rama that He should succeed in His efforts.

Rama has another doubt that he expresses. We will continue tomorrow.

Some children have come to sing bhajans here today. Please sing well with confidence. I hope you have practiced well. Our sadhana, our bhajan singing, our visits to the temple, all our good acts, and our proper studies should give us good results. Then lives will be successful and comfortable.

Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta

Om Santissantissantihi