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Wisdom and teachings of
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M y dearest ones! Do not give up your worldly life, your near and dear ones. Do not waste yourselves away, rushing around in search of God in the four directions, nor lose your own souls while seeking inner peace and comfort. Live in your own homes with your spouses and children, making full use of your artistic talents, or running your businesses or factories. In whatever position your destiny has placed you, whether you are millionaires or laborers, kings or beggars, God belongs to you all. If you call Him with love, thinking about Him with devotion, He will reveal Himself to you. He will grant a vision of the divine light of His love. Then you will know that you are an embodiment of bliss. You will realize, I am Shiva! Yes I am! Yes I am!"

quote 3126 | Muktananda
in Jonathan Star, the Inner Treasure, Tarcher Putnam, from an unpublished work written in 1972.

W hen the latent treasure of inner Shakti is released in meditation, you will soon ascend to the higher stages of meditation. You will see splendid sights and glorious forms. You will perceive internal divine lights. It is only by virtue of these lights that your body becomes beautiful and you feel love for one another. As the magnificent radiance sparkles in meditation, your craving for beautiful and loving forms will be satisfied. You will see the whole world as radiant.
Along with visions, you will hear inner sounds. Sweet, divine music will ring in your ears. As you listen to it, you will have such a sleep as is enjoyed only by heavenly beings. These melodious strains will compel you to dance in ecstasy and eradicate your indifference, distress, and ramblings of mind. Not only this, the inner music will release celestial ambrosia and you will relish its sweetness. This nectar, trickling from the palate, is the sweetest of all tastes. Each drop is worth more than millions. This elixir will expel all your diseases and fill you with gladness. Your anger will vanish. You will exude ambrosial sweetness. You will rejoice in your spouse and children. As you taste this nectar and become absorbed in it, you will be transported with inner delight.
0 my dear ones! You will also inhale divine scents. As your inner aroma is released, not only your home but your whole world will become tranquil; your body will shed its heaviness and sloth, and become lithe and vibrant.
When your inner Kundalini Shakti is stirred, She will release Her impulses of love throughout your body and its seventy-two thousand nerves. She will thrill your every blood cell with Her ecstatic joy. Only then will your craving for touch be truly gratified. You will recover the lost luster of your eyes. Your withered face will again glow with love and your lips will become rosy. Your world will quiver with beauty, joy, and love! You will become aware of the omnipresence of the Lord; you will realize that this entire world is His and that He is maintaining it.

quote 3125 | Muktananda
in Jonathan Star, the Inner Treasure, Tarcher Putnam, from an unpublished work written in 1972.

A ll philosophies and scriptures say the same thing: "God dwells in this human body."

Do not consider your body a mere lump of flesh made of seven components. It is a noble instrument. In it are situated all holy places, gods, mantras, and the source of all extraordinary powers in this world…. God dwells in the body. He is present as fully in you as in the highest Heavens. Why are you exhausting yourself looking for Him in different places instead of in your own heart? You should live your normal life, but accord Him the chief place among your daily activities. Whatever may be your religion or philosophy, do not make yourself a foolish, weak, and trivial creature. Do not head toward decline and disaster by regarding this body as godless. Do not commit spiritual suicide by belittling yourself through defective understanding.

quote 3124 | Muktananda
in Jonathan Star, the Inner Treasure, Tarcher Putnam, from an unpublished work written in 1972.

A s I gazed at the tiny Blue Pearl, I saw it expand, spreading its radiance in all directions so that the whole sky and earth were illuminated by it. It was now no longer a Pearl but had become shining, blazing, infinite Light. The Light which the writers of the scriptures and those who have realized the Truth have called the divine light of Chiti. The Light pervaded everywhere in the form of the universe. I saw the earth being born and expanding from the Light of Consciousness, just as one can see smoke rising from a fire. I could actually see the world within this conscious Light, and the Light within the world, like threads in a piece of cloth, and cloth in the threads. Just as a seed becomes a tree, with branches, leaves, flowers, and fruit, so within Her own being Chiti becomes animals, birds, germs, insects, gods, demons, men, and women. I could see this radiance of Consciousness, resplendent and utterly beautiful, silently pulsating as supreme ecstasy within me, outside me, above me, below me.

quote 3123 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. Play of Consciousness. South Fallsburg, NY. SYDA Foundation, 1978, p. 183.

C hiti is supremely free. She is self-revealing. She is the only cause of the creation, sustenance, and dissolution of the universe. She exists, holding the power within Her that creates, sustains and destroys. The prime cause of everything, She is also the means to the highest bliss. All forms, all places, and all instants of time are manifested from Her. She is all-pervading, always completely full and of everlasting light. Manifesting as the universe, still She remains established in Her indivisibility and unity. Within the Blue Light, She pulsates as ambrosial bliss. There is nothing apart from Her. There is no one like Her. She is only One, the supreme witness, the One who is called cosmic consciousness or Supreme Shiva. She is ever solitary In the beginning, in the middle, and in the end, only Chiti is. She does not depend on any other agency; She is Her own basis and support. As She alone exists, She is in perfect freedom.

quote 3122 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. Siddha Meditation. South Falisburg, AW.. SYDA Foundation, 1977, p. 60.

I t is not surprising that we keep looking for love, because we are all born of love. We come out of love. All of us are nothing but vibrations of love. We are sustained by love, and in the end we merge back into love…. This world is nothing but a school of love; our relationships with our husband or wife, with our children and parents, with our friends and relatives are the university in which we are meant to learn what love and devotion truly are.
Yet the love we experience through other people is just a shadow of the love of the inner Self There is a sublime place inside us where love dwells…. The love that pulses in the cave of the heart does not depend on anything outside. It does not expect anything. It is completely independent.
The love of the Self is selfless and unconditional. It is not relative. It is completely free. It is self-generated and it never dies. This kind of love knows no distinction between high and low, between man and woman. Just as the earth remains the same no matter who comes and goes on it, so true love remains unchanging and independent. Love penetrates your entire being. Love is Consciousness. Love is bliss. It does not exist for the sake of something else. It is supremely free. The path of inner love leads a lover to God. As a person walks on this inner path of love, he not only attains love, but merges in the ocean of love.
If you want to experience love, you have to start by loving yourself' First you have to love your body, then those who are related to your body, and then the master of the body, the inner Self … The truth is that God has no physical body; the only body He has is the body of love. If the love you experience in your daily life-the little love you feel for your friends, your relatives, your pets, and even your possessions-could be turned toward the inner Self, that would be enough to bring you liberation.

quote 3121 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. I Have Become Alive. South FalIsburg, NY. SYDA Foundation, 1985, pp. 175-177,183.

G od is everywhere, there's no doubt about that, but you have to have the right eye to see Him. Look at the air. It blows everywhere, but you can't see it. You can only feel it when it touches you…. God too can be seen. Sit quietly for a while and meditate on the Self You'll be able to see Him. In what form would you like to see God? He has taken the form of bread in this piece of bread-don't try to see Him as a stone in bread. In fruit you should see God as fruit, in a tree you should see God as a tree, and in yourself you should see Him as yourself Who says that God cannot be seen? Don't try to see Him as different from the way He has manifested Himself-see Him as He is! Try to see Him as He is.

quote 3120 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. I Have Become Alive. South Falisburg, W. SYDA Foundation, 1985, pp. 147, 172,203.

O nly by becoming a fish can one know how a fish lives. To understand a great being, one first has to become one with him. That is true knowledge.

quote 3119 | Muktananda
a talk given in Ganeshpuri, India, 1983, and Darshan Magazine, Vol. 30131:162 (1989).

T he state of a Siddha is beyond both knowing and not knowing. In that state, bliss is embraced by bliss. Joy is experienced through joy. Success is gained through success. Light dwells within light…. In that state, astonishment drowns in astonishment. All dos and don'ts are silenced. Rest attains total rest. Experience delights in experience. The state of a Siddha is the attainment of total perfection. Siddhas are like this. 0 friend, read this very carefully.

quote 3118 | Muktananda
a talk given in Ganeshpuri, India, 1983, and Darshan Magazine, Vol. 30131:162 (1989).

T he world is a creation of Shakti, and a spiritual seeker, a meditator, should not look down upon the world or regard it as something other than Shakti. Shakti does not only manifest Herself as Divine Energy within the body; it is Shakti who projects the cosmos in the pure void. It is Shakti who makes this world while staying different from this world. It is Shakti who becomes good as well as bad. It is Shakti who manifests Herself in our worldly pursuits and also in our spiritual pursuits. So we should not regard our mundane life as being different from Shakti. That is an aspect of the same Shakti we are trying to attain through meditation. The Shakti creates the universe and dwells in a human being in the form of Divine Energy. A yogi worships Her and awakens Her. So nothing is really different or apart from the Shakti. Wherever you are you will receive guidance from the Shakti, because Shakti Herself manifests as your worldly life.

quote 3117 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. I Have Become Alive. South Falisburg, NY. SYDA Foundation, 1985, p. 29, and from a lecture given in Miami, Florida, 1980.

I f you understand what I am going to tell you, you won't have to work very hard, you won't even have to meditate very much. The Guru is not a physical form. The Guru is not an impressive figure peering at you from a picture. The Guru is not a person with long hair or a beard. The Guru is the divine power of Grace. The Guru is Shakti Herself Even if you receive Shakti from the Guru, it is not his personal possession. The Shakti comes from the divine source, from the Supreme Lord, and this you must never forget.
If you do not have this knowledge, no matter how much you meditate ' it will not lead you anywhere. If you are ignorant of the nature of Shakti, no matter how much wealth you have, you are poor. All that you need, wherever you are, is this constant awareness of the true nature of the Shakti, firm faith in it, and true devotion to it. If you have such firm faith, Shakti will guide you wherever you may be; Shakti will take the form of the Guru, or Shakti will give you messages from within. You will have absolutely no difficulty.

quote 3116 | Muktananda
Muktananda, Swami. I Have Become Alive. South Falisburg, NY. SYDA Foundation, 1985, p. 29, and from a lecture given in Miami, Florida, 1980.

W hen sleep comes to an end, a man returns to his senses.
Now my individuality has come to an end, and I have returned to Shiva and Shakti.

Salt gives up its salty taste to become one with the ocean;
I give up my individual self to become Shiva and Shakti.

When the covering is removed, the air inside a plantain tree merges with the air outside.
And this is how I honor Shiva and Shakti by removing all separation and becoming one with them.

quote 3115 | Jnaneshwar
in Jonathan Star, the Inner Treasure, Tarcher Putnam, translated by Jonathan Star and Julle Lal from the Amritanubhava, Chapter 1.

O ut of Supreme love they swallow up each other
But separate again for the joy of being two.

They are not completely the same but neither are they different.
No one can tell exactly what they are.

How intense is their longing to be with each other.
This is their greatest bliss.
Never, not even in jest,
Do they allow their unity to be disturbed.

They are so averse to separation
That even though they have become this entire world,
Never for a moment do they let a difference come between them. […]

They created a difference to enjoy this world.
When that "difference" had one glimpse of their intimacy
It could not help but merge back into the bliss of their eternal union. […]

They become two for the sake of a divine play,
But in every moment they seek to become one again. […]

How can we distinguish these two from each other?
He appears because of Her,
And She exists because of Him. […]

To capture light we take hold of fire.
To capture the Supreme Shiva we must take hold of Shakti. […]

An object has a reflection:
When looking we see two images, yet there is only one thing.
Likewise, this world is a reflection of the Supreme Lord.
We may see two,
Yet only One exists.

Out of pure emptiness
She gives rise to the entire world.
Everything depends on Her.
Yet She exists
only because of Her Lord. […]

Merged in unity
there was nothing to do.
So Shakti, the bringer of good fortune,
Created this world for the sake of divine play.

She reveals Her Lord's splendor
by melting Herself and becoming everything;
And He glorifies Her
by hiding Himself completely. […]

He is so mysterious and subtle,
That while apparent
He cannot be seen.
It is by Her grace alone that He comes into being. […]

While He is sleeping,
She gives birth to all that exists and all that does not exist.
When She is sleeping, He has no form at all.

Look!
He is hidden, and cannot be found without Her.
For they are mirrors, each revealing the other. […]

She is His very form,
But Her radiance comes from Him.
Blending into one, they enjoy the nectar of their own union.

Shiva and Shakti are one,
Like air and the wind,
Like gold and its luster,

Shiva and Shakti cannot be separated.
They are like musk and its fragrance, like fire and its heat.

In the light of the Sun there is no difference between day and night.
In the Light of the Supreme Truth there is no difference between Shiva and Shakti. […]

Jnanadeva says,
I honor the union of Shiva and Shakti, who devour this world of name and form like a sweet dish.
All that remains is the One."

Embracing each other they merge into One,
As darkness merges with the light
At the breaking of dawn.

When we discover their Unity,
All words and all thoughts dissolve into silence,
Just as when the Universal Deluge comes, the waters of the ocean, and those of the Ganges, will merge into one …

The air and the wind will merge into the endless sky;
The sun and its light will merge into the Universal Fire.

With a true vision of them, the seer and the seen merge into one.
Again I honor the two who are one.

They are like an ocean of knowledge.
And only those who throw themselves in can drink of their waters.

I appear separate from them just so I can honor them.
But that separation is not real, it is only in name.

quote 3114 | Jnaneshwar
in Jonathan Star, the Inner Treasure, Tarcher Putnam, translated by Jonathan Star and Julle Lal from the Amritanubhava, Chapter 1.

W ithout a true Guru, we cannot attain our intimate treasure.
Without the grace of the Guru, one cannot realize the Self
Contemplation and concentration,
devotion and worship, are all useless without the grace of the Guru.
Without the grace of the Guru, one moves like a blind man, floundering, falling into ditches as he wends his way.

All great men that have lived in bygone times,
All the Saints and Sages of old, have attained realization only by the power of the Guru.

In short,
Liberation can be attained only by the help of a Guru and in no other way.

quote 3113 | Ramdasa
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 390-392, 395, 410, 412-413, 4 15.

D eath does not take power into account. Death does not take wealth into account. Death does not take fame into account. Death does not say this is a King; Death does not say this is an Emperor. Death does not say this is a learned man. Death does not say this is a man of higher caste … Death does not take the gods into account. Death does not take the incarnations of God into account …
Gone are the people of great glory. Gone are the people who defied death for a long time. Gone are the people of great fame. Gone are the generals and all their spoils. Gone are the sons of noble families. The protectors of men have all passed away. The great teachers and philosophers have passed away. Gone are those who wielded a sword. Gone are those who have given in charity. Gone are those who have protected the people. Gone are the great assemblies of men. Gone are all the scholars; gone are all the renunciants …

All those are gone, says Ramdasa. Only those who have realized the Self, and become one with Him, have remained.

quote 3112 | Ramdasa
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 390-392, 395, 410, 412-413, 4 15.

B rahman is more spotless than the sky.
It is formless and vast.
It extends above all heavens.
It exists beyond all worlds.
It occupies the smallest part of the universe.
It is quite near to us and yet it is hidden.
We live in it and yet we do not know it.

Wherever you cast your glance,
it is before you.
You in fact see within it.
It is both inside and outside.
Where we feel it is not,
it immediately manifests itself
Whatever object we take in hand
it is nearer to us than that.

Ramdasa says,
Only one who has had the spiritual experience
can know this secret.

.

quote 3111 | Ramdasa
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 390-392, 395, 410, 412-413, 4 15

B rahman is before all things.
It fills the whole universe.
Nothing compares to its purity.
In all the heavens, in the celestial worlds, from the far reaches of the earth, it fills every nook and cranny.
It fills all this space at once.
It touches all and abides in all.
It cannot be soiled by clay.
It cannot be carried away by flood.
Simultaneously, it is before us and behind us.
Simultaneously, it is to our right and to our left.
Simultaneously, it is above and below.

As soon as we begin to be aware of it, we forget it.
But as soon as we forget it, it comes within the ken of our consciousness …

When we try to realize it, it cannot be realized.
When we try to leave it, it cannot be left.
We are connected with Brahman forever, and nothing can break this connection.

quote 3110 | Ramdasa
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 390-392, 395, 410, 412-413, 4 15.

W hen one looks into a mirror it seems as if one is looking at a different object, yet one is looking at oneself.
I am the brook that has merged into the river.
My country is now the whole universe.

Liberation cannot be purchased in a marketplace, nor can it be acquired by wandering in the woods or forest.
Liberation cannot be had by large quantities of wealth, nor can it be found in the upper or nether worlds.
Liberation can be acquired, says Tuka, only at the cost of life.

quote 3109 | Tukaram
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY. SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 303, 312, 320, 339, 349.

H e who utters the Name of God while walking gets the merit of a sacrifice at every step.
His body becomes a place of pilgrimage.
He who repeats God's Name while working always finds perfect peace.
He who utters the Name of God while eating gets the merit of a fast even though he has taken his meals.

Even if one were to give in charity the whole earth encircled by the seas it would not equal the merit of repeating the Name.
By the power of the Name one will know what cannot be known,
One will see what cannot be seen,
One will speak what cannot be spoken,
One will meet what cannot be met.
Tuka says, Incalculable is the gain that conies from repeating the Name of God.

quote 3108 | Tukaram
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY. SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 303, 312, 320, 339, 349.

T he Saint becomes so unified with God, that it is impossible to distinguish between God and Saint.
Embrace meets embrace.
Body is unified with body.
Words mix with words.
Eyes meet with eyes.

I have girded up my loins, and found a way to cross the ocean of life.
Come here, come here, great and small, women and men.
Take no thought; have no anxiety.
I shall carry all of you to the other shore.
A come as the sole bearer of the stamp of God
to carry you over with His Name.

quote 3107 | Tukaram
Ranade, R. D. Mysticism in India. Albany, NY. SUMY Press, 1983, pp. 303, 312, 320, 339, 349.

W ho is free from sin?
One who chants the name of God.

quote 3103 | (Adi Shankaracharya) Shankara
Prabhavananda, Swami, and isherwood, Christopher, trans. Shankara's Crest-Jewel of Discrimination. New York: New American Library, 194 7, pp. 119-127.

T o whom do the gods pay homage?
To one who is compassionate.

quote 3102 | (Adi Shankaracharya) Shankara
Prabhavananda, Swami, and isherwood, Christopher, trans. Shankara's Crest-Jewel of Discrimination. New York: New American Library, 194 7, pp. 119-127.

W hat is the first and most important duty
for a man of right understanding?
To cut through the bonds of worldly desire.

quote 3101 | (Adi Shankaracharya) Shankara
Prabhavananda, Swami, and isherwood, Christopher, trans. Shankara's Crest-Jewel of Discrimination. New York: New American Library, 194 7, pp. 119-127.

W hat is the best thing a spiritual seeker can do?
Carry out the instructions of his Guru.

quote 3100 | (Adi Shankaracharya) Shankara
Prabhavananda, Swami, and isherwood, Christopher, trans. Shankara's Crest-Jewel of Discrimination. New York: New American Library, 194 7, pp. 119-127.

M y mind fell like a hailstone into that vast expanse of Consciousness.
Touching one drop of it I melted away and became one with the Absolute.
And now, though I return to human consciousness,
I see nothing, I hear nothing,
I know that nothing is different from me.

quote 3099 | (Adi Shankaracharya) Shankara
Prabhavananda, Swami, and isherwood, Christopher, trans. Shankara's Crest-Jewel of Discrimination. New York: New American Library, 194 7, pp. 119-127.

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