Mandukya Upanishad : ( 04/03/2013. )

========================================================================= Tuesday, January 03, 2022. 07:00. (Spoken on January 14th, 1973) Post-5. ========================================================================= Super-consciousness, sometimes called the supramental state, turiya, is inclusive of all that is in the other three states of consciousness. Whatever was there of worth and meaning in the condition of waking, dream or sleep is also to be found in the turiya state, only freed from the tension of it. The turiya state of consciousness is the goal of life. It is described as nāntaḥ-prajñam, na bahiṣ prajñam, nobhayataḥ-prajñam, na prajnañā-ghanam, na prajñam, nāprajñam, adṛṣtam, avyavahārayam, agrāhyam, alakṣaṇam, acintyam, avyapadeśyam, ekātma-pratyaya-sāram, prapañcopaśamam, śāntam, śivam, advaitam, caturtham manyante, sa ātmā, sa vijñeyaḥ (Ma.U. 7).  This is how the Mandukya describes the fourth state of consciousness. In the turiya state we are not aware of anythin...

 ======================================================================== ======================================================================= Friday, December 16, 2022. 08:00. (Spoken on January 14th, 1973) Post-4. ======================================================================== But the purpose of consciousness is to cease, to put an end to, all tension with objects. In this effort it has not succeeded in the waking condition, and it is not going to succeed in the dreaming condition either. Merely because we only contemplate objects in the mind instead of actually confronting them physically, it does not mean that the mind has ceased from its effort. What gives pain, inconvenience and discomfort is struggle of every kind. In sleep, consciousness falls back into a condition of inactivity where, though it is not in a state of harmony with its objects, at least it is unconscious of the disharmony that is there. See the difference between samadhi and sleep. While in samadhi...

 ========================================================================= ========================================================================= Sunday, November 27, 2022. 07:00. (Spoken on January 14th, 1973) Post-3. ========================================================================= The Mandukya Upanishad is an analysis of the states of consciousness, as the Vedantic meditation of the Upanishads is mainly a meditation on Consciousness. Consciousness is the Supreme Being, prajñānam brahma; therefore, a study of Consciousness is imperative for meditation on Consciousness. The bound soul is a state of consciousness, the liberated soul is also a state of consciousness, and meditation is a condition of consciousness. The whole of the Upanishadic teaching is, therefore, a huge essay on consciousness. Thus, entering into a study of the states of consciousness, the Mandukya Upanishad gives us a beautiful exposition of at least three of the strata of consciousness, which we gene...

 ======================================================================== ======================================================================== Wednesday, November 09, 2022. 08:00. (Spoken on January 14th, 1973) Post-2. ======================================================================== The objective analysis given to us in the Aitareya Upanishad tells us that the individual seeking freedom and salvation has come out from the Supreme Being itself; therefore, its blessedness, its final destiny, lies in the realisation of its original identity with the Supreme Being. The Atman is Consciousness, Brahman is Consciousness. Prajñā pratiṣṭhā prajñānam brahma (A.U. 3.1.3) says the Upanishad. This prajnana is also the essence of the individual soul. By the saman adhikarana method, or the bhauda saman adhikarana, as they call it, the recognition of a common substratum being there between two entities establishes the existence of a common factor between them. The objective side as the...

 ========================================================================= ======================================================================== Friday, October 21, 2022. 07:00. (Spoken on January 14th, 1973) Post-1. ========================================================================= Today we shall take an excursion into the Upanishadic method of meditation, which is the predominant note of all Vedantic texts. The Upanishadic approach to Truth is out-and-out philosophical and mystical. The Upanishads take a comprehensive view from three angles of vision: the external, the internal, and another feature which transcends them both. The Mandukya, the Taittiriya and the Aitareya Upanishads may be taken as examples of this type of approach, which also receives elaborate treatment and profound consideration in the Chhandogya and Brihadaranyaka Upanishads. The Upanishadic method is something not unknown to students of Vedanta, but yet the Upanishads have a peculiarity of their own...

 ======================================================================= Chinmaya Mission Chinmaya Mission Peoria Ilinois, USA, joyously celebrated the long-awaited Moorti Sthapana - A Grand Loving Welcome to Maa Saraswati in August 2022. The sthapana was most special and memorable as it was graced by Pujya Swami Swaroopananda ji, Pujya Swami Shantananda ji and Pujya Swami Sharananada ji!! The preparatory ceremony started from August 11th with  Ankurarpanam, Kalasha Prathistha of 11 kalashas and Yantra Japa and lasted till 20th August. On August 20 pre-sthapana rituals with Ganesha puja and moola mantra homam in the presence of Pujya Swami Sharananandaji were performed. Swami Sharananandaji gave a benedictory speech blessing us on this occasion, followed by a cultural offering to Devi Saraswati. On August 21, Sthapana was performed in the presence of Mukhya Swami Swaroopananda ji, Pujya Swami Shantananda ji, and Pujya Swami Sharanananda ji. Swamijis placed the Saraswati yantra...