'CONVERSATIONS WITH PARAMATMA'
PART 1:
02.12.2023
" Paramatma as Guru and Guru as Paramatma".
Many years ago I found myself in a rather unusual, incredible place 'above'... You brought me there with your mercy...
The place I now understand differently, through the 'sastra caksus', through the eyes of the sastras, which speak about the Ocean of Milk and the Third Purusa Avatara, Ksirodakasayi Visnu, the Supersoul, Supreme Soul of every living being, the Paramatma...
You took me to where the great GURUs of this world are situated, I saw their figures, many of them I could recognize...
*Was it my return? I ask.
*You say that in a certain sense yes...
This position is actually the 'Paramatma Position' of those who have realized this level, who have direct access to the Supreme Soul of all souls, to the God within the heart and hearts of others.
*So, He has many faces, the Gurus? I ask.
*You answer... His countenances are innumerable... God is incomprehensible...
*I saw there on that platform among many gurus also Krsna. What is His role there? I am asking.
*You answer... He is part of the plan, this is Krsna-Balaram position, Krsna as Balarama, or Balarama as Krsna. Krsna as the Guru principle. He is leading as a Guru and/or Paramatma.
*śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ
hṛdy antaḥ stho hy abhadrāṇi
vidhunoti suhṛt satām
Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramātmā [Supersoul] in everyone’s heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted. (SB 1.2.17)
*Is this position of the Guru the actual position of Krsna? The position of Krsna in the heart? I ask,
*You answer... It is the direct position of the Guru, for the Guru is One, the source of all Avatars derived from Sankarsana, Balarama, Krsna. He is called 'Caitya-Guru'.
*Yes,... Srila Prabhupada used to explain the term Caitya-Guru' as ”the guru, or the spiritual master, who is sitting in my heart, citta”... „Caitya-guru means "the guru who is sitting within your heart." Caitya-guru. But He does not speak to anyone. He speaks to everyone, but only the devotee can hear...”
Srila Prabhupada continues: „So Kṛṣṇa is advising that "I am in everyone's heart." You can take advice from Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is ready. Kṛṣṇa's other name is caitya-guru. Caitya-guru means the guru who is situated within your heart. Kṛṣṇa comes out as instructor guru or initiator guru outside, and he is sitting within the heart as caitya-guru. Kṛṣṇa is ready to help you, help us, every one of us, in two ways: by the external guru and internal guru. Internal guru, He is Kṛṣṇa Himself, and external guru, His manifestation, the spiritual master. So we should take advantage of two gurus and make our lives successful. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.” (Lecture on BG 13.3, Bombay, September 26, 1973)
„In the Vedānta-sūtra or Bhāgavata it is said that Brahmā... He's the first creature... He received knowledge from Kṛṣṇa." How? "From the heart." Tene brahma hṛdā. Hṛdā. Because God, Kṛṣṇa, is sitting in everyone's heart—your heart, my heart, everyone. And He can give you instructions. His name is therefore Caitya-guru. ”Caitya-guru means who gives conscience and knowledge from within”. In the Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa says, sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo: [Bg. 15.15] "In everyone's heart I am sitting." Hṛdi, "within the heart"; sanniviṣṭo, "I am sitting there." Sarvasya. Not only you and me, even animals insects, birds, beasts, Brahma, everyone. Sarvasya. All living entities. So sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo mattaḥ: "from Me"; smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca, "remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness." Forgetfulness also. If you want to forget God, God will give you intelligence that you can forget God forever. He's so kind. Whatever you want, He will give you intelligence, "Do like this."„ (Sunday Feast Lecture -- Los Angeles, May 21, 1972)
*I heard from one of my teachers that „Krsna is the Paramatma for devotees”. How does this work? I ask.
*You answer... All Krsna's pastimes with His devotees are on the platform of Paramatma. It is a process of purification from material attachments, sweet and auspicious like everything having to do with Krsna. But only those who completely free themselves from the five gross and subtle forms of rasa attain a pure position and can be among the 'Great Gurus' of this world...
*vāco vegaṁ manasaḥ krodha-vegaṁ
jihvā-vegam udaropastha-vegam
etān vegān yo viṣaheta dhīraḥ
sarvām apīmāṁ pṛthivīṁ sa śiṣyāt
„A sober person who can tolerate the urge to speak, the mind’s demands, the actions of anger and the urges of the tongue, belly and genitals is qualified to make disciples all over the world.” (NOI 1)
*I have been given the spiritual name Anandamayi Dasi, is this related to the last cover of 'Kosha', called Anandamaya Kosha? I ask.
*You answer... Anandamaya Kosa is the covering of Paramatma. Of the five coverings or koshas, Pañcaśikha states of consciousness: 1. Annamaya Kosha – 'food' covering of the gross body, 2. Pranamaya Kosha – Pranic covering, 3. Manomaya Kosha – Mind subtle covering, 4. Vijnanamaya Kosha – the covering of the vijnana realized knowledge,... the last one 5. Anandamaya Kosha is the covering of Paramatma.
*Yes,... Srila Prabhupada mentions Pañcaśikha in Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 6.
Is Paramatma covering also something that has to be removed from the soul in order to free it from all five shells? I ask.
*You answer... Yes, it is the same conditioning as the other "Koshas" that should be removed to finally reveal the true face of God... the Bhagavan...
However, your name actually has a different meaning..., it is not Anandamaya but Anandamayi, and that makes a big difference...
*Bhagavan... Yes, „... Kṛṣṇa, or the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt [Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12], sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ [Bs. 5.1]... ” (BG 2.20 p.)
I remember that there was a continuation of my trip... when you brought me to this platform where I met many Gurus and Krsna, then Krsna Himself took me on a further journey, upwards... to a transcendental, extraordinary place where I felt like I had finally come home... Srimati Radharani was residing there...
Is this the destination of our journey... home... ? I ask.
*You answer... Yes, this is the destination... home...
PART 2:
„The Art of Forgiveness”
01.01.2024
In your Little Big World of your Little Big Things, there is something that can be put into practice... Starting from the 'Art of Forgiveness'...
You ask why?
Let me tell you a story that applies to you, him or her because it applies to all. Somewhere, in the Universe of the Material Cloud, the Great God creates His 'Cosmic Form'.
Where is it located, you ask?... the answer is simple... Then you ask when it happened?... and the answer is also simple...
Beyond the Divine Spiritual World, there is the World of Living Beings. It exists eternally in the Eternal World of God...
Why Cloud you ask, you ask why?
The opposite of the Spiritual World is the Material World. The mirror image of the Spiritual World...
What can you see in this mirror, The answer is simple - ask what?
Everything you dream about, everything you desire...
Do you want to desire more? Do you want to dream?
... Or would you rather wake up from this dream and start living...
It is difficult, you say...
Yes, we are bound by many ties, we have many attachments...
You ask, where did these bonds come from? The answer is simple... from dreams...
A vicious circle, you say. Yes, and it is called Samsara...
How to get out of this Samsara?
Start with the art of forgiveness.
You ask why? What is the point?
The sense is unity of all in the Cosmic Form of the Lord.
Oh? You say... But what does it mean?
Look at yourself... You are a replica of this Cosmic Form. Every thing inside you pulsates, acts... You are a yantra, a machine functioning better or worse. Your life is the life of the Cosmic Form and vice versa. We are one in it, replicas, and one with the Highest.
You say it sounds strange...
But, from what point of view is it strange?
Every part of you reflects the Cosmic Form, the countless atoms of countless living beings in the perfect composition of the Divine Creator. Perfection...
Can you separate yourself from the WHOLE? Can you separate yourself from the Cosmic Form of God?
Instead..., can you feel unity with others in this commonality, as in the cogs of a mechanical clock, each particle is turning and moving the next? There is no escape from it. There is no separation.
You must accept and love everyone because 'Everyone Is In You'. The mirror image of the Macrocosm in your Microcosm.
Can you understand this?
But you doubt... And no longer ask...
Now, ask why you should forgive...
The answer is simple, because you forgive yourself...
Try to create the world of your existence based on unity. Try to see others as particles of yourself contained in the Cosmic Form. Try to see that you yourself are somewhere in it, as a Vaisya, Sudra, Ksatriya, or Brahmin...
And try to help others as you would help yourself...
THEN... you become a Vaisnava...
Hare Krsna...
PART 3:
01.02.2024
„Surrender...”
When it comes to the next familiar repetition, we have the feeling that something has happened before, that the situation is repeating itself, like déjà vu. The repetition of the same behavior into which we fall, like falling into holes on a bumpy road, sometimes very deep holes, called in the sastras 'samskaras'. Deep impressions, traumas, or strong emotions cause holes in our path, and when the time comes for the same transition, repetition, there is healing of wounds, as after a battle... Once, a long time ago, at my beginning, I heard a lecture by Suhotra Swami in Radhadesh, he was talking about the battle we are fighting, how our subtle bodies look wounded, holes everywhere, in the hands, heads, legs, holes in the abdomen, everywhere... full of subtle wounds that need to be healed...
Then you have the choice, of whether you want to continue to sink into your experiences or whether you will soften the transition and fill the hole with non-attachment...
… Is this 'capitulation'?
Can you call Surrender to the Lord a capitulation?
… In a sense it is.
… But Surrender is a form of military drill in which the main task is to obey the orders of a superior.
… That is how it is, you are in Krsna's army, you are His soldier on the great battlefield of Maya, and this is your "Mahabharata" – which means the battle for dharma, sanatana dharma, mission, whose main determinant is compassion - karuna. And you are one of the Pandavas whose only goal is to establish it with the help of Krsna. He is the commander, the chief general. who leads his army of bhakti driving your chariot through the intricate, dangerous, capricious, and cunning world.
… In one of the Srimad Bhagavatam lectures, Srila Prabhupada talks about preaching, which means speaking authoritatively, which means 'adhikara who is prepared to meet opposition'.
„Preaching means to obey the order of the spiritual master or superior authorities to do good to others... Preaching means he must be conscious, very... Krsna Conscious, advanced. Krsna conscious means that he's a lover of Krsna. Isvare tad...
īśvare tad-adhīneṣu
bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca
prema-maitrī-kṛpopekṣā
yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ
An intermediate or second-class devotee, called madhyama-adhikārī, offers his love to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is a sincere friend to all the devotees of the Lord, shows mercy to ignorant people who are innocent, and disregards those who are envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
He will see [this] four things... If you become a preacher, then you'll create so many enemies also. Just like Prahlada Maharaja...”
Srila Prabhupada used to say that his disciples are like monkeys, just like the army of monkeys in Lord Rama's pastimes.
But I don't know if I'm fit to be a soldier, I'm a pacifist. I am not a ksatriya.
… Find the 'pacifistic' fighter in you. You have no option, just as Arjuna had no option, he wanted to withdraw from the action, renounce, and retire to the forest...
… Does 'Bhakti' always mean war?
Yes, that is how it always ends, with war. Your position, developing spiritually creates a conflict with the material world you live in. You can hide for a while in the Temple, you can escape in the karma-yoga of some work, but the further you go, the deeper Maya will pursue you, check you, and engage her agents to attack you, they will take everything from you, they will harass you, they will ridicule you and humiliate you, but with the sword of non-attachment, you will gradually free yourself from this illusion. Krsna will show you the best way to win...
… So, we are the winners like Pandavas?
… Yes, you are the winner!
sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
Abandon all varieties of religion and just Surrender unto Me.
I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions...
... Do not fear ...
(Bg 18.66)
Haribol!
PART 4
01.03.2024
„Absolute of PancaTattva”
Panca means five, Tattva means the Absolute Truth, true or actual state, truth, reality. an element, a primary substance, philosophy, Brahman, true or essential nature.
Tattva is considered to be composed of "tad" – of this world, there, in that place, at that time, now, equally, accordingly, etc., and the word "tvam" – 'anga', You, as you are, Your Lordship, etc.
There are many well-known stories of Divine, Sacred, Saintly Personalities contained in this statement 'Panca Tattva', which are close to us. They represent the sublime values we cultivate as followers.
… Although the descriptions of these great and wonderful figures are detailed and extensive, I highly doubt that one can claim to know them. Perhaps superficially, as a jar of honey licked from the outside, it has no real taste until you open it and try it yourself - this is what self-realization means, realizing everything yourself, 'tasting', in the process of self-realization...
How to get to this jar, how to open it, and how to taste the nectar inside?
... Lord Nityananda advises to develop faith, this is the first step on the path to self-realization from Sraddha – faith,... to prema – love... Faith is the payment...
… Okay, but how to develop this faith...
… There are many ingredients, and the main one is to commune with the devotees of the Lord, to seek such company, and to truly respect them...
Without the right approach, it is impossible to learn to serve them. This is the secret, offenses destroy relationships, which is why recognising true Vaisnavas and sincerely respecting them is a rarity in this world...
… This aspect leads us to the first Character in the 'Pantheon' of Panca Tattva, Srivasa Thakura, who symbolizes the Pure Devotee, Pure Jiva, a Vaisnava, and reverence towards Him.
So, in reality, to understand Srivasa Thakura one has to start serving the real Vaisnavas?
… Yes, this aspect is necessary to rise further and understand the other Figures in the Panca Tattva 'Pantheon'.One has to know that such a Vaisnava is above because he considers himself by nature the lowest... These are very 'Advanced' individuals.
… This is a very high level, but can we now move to the next form, Lord Gadadhar, if we are already (albeit theoretically) at the level of understanding and realizing Srivasa Thakura...?
...Yes, we can, but we are entering the realm of 'impossible', for without attaining the position of a pure devotee, no one can understand, let alone realize the character of Gadadhar Pandit and the other characters themselves.
… And what does Gadadhar Pandit symbolize?
… Gadadhar Pandit is the symbol of the Lord's Energy, He is on the servant's side.
He is identified with Srimati Radharani, yet, not alone, but with Lalita. Why? Because Lalita is the first sakhi who serves Sri Sri Radha Krsna. Her task is to serve the Divine Couple. So here Radharani expands and is sometimes called Ananga Manjari, a combination of Radharani and Lalita. When Lord Krsna expands as Balaram or Nityananda, this means that He creates the role of the servant, and from Srimati Radharani expands Ananga manjari. Balaram is the servant God and Ananga is the servant Goddess. They are the same Nityananda and Gadadhar.
However, this does not mean that Krsna Himself is serving, or that Radharani Herself is serving, as is sometimes mistakenly assumed, it is always Their Expansions that are serving, and all Krsna's pastimes take place at this level.
... And what can be said about the Lord of Advaita?
...Here we enter the level of 'Visnu Tattva' in Panca Tattva, where the Lord Himself manifests in various forms, these are forms of action, a role to be fulfilled in this material world, so in a way, it is a form of service.
He symbolizes the Incarnations of the Lord, containing all the Avatars of the Lord descending into different regions of the Bhu Mandala. Devotees group themselves around such figures and worship such Incarnations.
Advaita Himself shows this worship when He wants to invoke the Lord on Earth, worships His form of Sila.... Then His worship transports the Lord from the Spiritual World into earthly pastimes as Lord Caitanya. This shows how powerful the very act of pure worship is.
... We already know about Lord Nityananda that He is Balaram, the first Expansion of the Lord, what more can be learned about this next Great Personality in Panca Tattva?
...As we have mentioned He is the servant God. He appears in various forms like Sesa to serve the Lord directly with paraphernalia in many different ways. This is a more intimate form of service, as in the case of Lord Gadadhar. There is a God who creates activity, so He creates diversity around Himself to serve Him. He expands..., spreads, and transforms His Divine Nature...
Lord Nityananda is considered Avadhuta because He (and only He) is not bound by any regulations as a form or Expansion of the Lord. He is the Lord Himself in the form of a servant, so His service is without limitation. He does what He wills but always serves...
... We come to the fifth major figure in the 'Pantheon' of Panca Tattva. This is a form of the Supreme Lord, Lord Caitanya, what can we understand from this Character?
... Lord Caitanya is the Incarnation of the Lord Himself, has various tasks, and is subject to them. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and sometimes He reveals His nature of God, but mostly He is in a role, as in theatre, playing a bhakta of the Lord to rehearse the Sankirtana movement.
There are also several intimate reasons for His appearance...
He is the union of Radha Krsna, who are One Person, God. They are One merged God, two inseparable forms of that One God, like two halves of one person, 'right and left'..., feeling the same thing, the same joy and the same sorrow. What affects one person affects the other, what happens to one person also happens to the other.... This relationship between Radha and Krsna, God in two persons is however beyond comprehension.... is not easy to understand...
When Krsna is not One with Radharani, there arises in Him the craving to taste what Srimati Radharani feels in His company, hence He takes the form of Lord Caitanya with the mood and complexion of Srimati Radharani.
In this way, Lord Caitanya brings us closer to the very original form of the Supreme God, the Divine Couple, Sri Sri Radha Krsna...
... It is really a bit complicated...
... Yes, the form of God is impossible to understand, because it is an extremely complex aspect that cannot be externally grasped...
So one can only take theories, to realize God step by step in one's own ability, in a never-ending process of discovering Him, explore Sri Sri Radha Krsna and oneself in that relationship...
... It is truly a huge project, unending like God Himself...
Hare Krsna!
Part 5
'INNOCENCE & PURITY OF GOD'
18.04.2024
… What is the nature of the Soul?
… Previous karma creates the conditions in which one is born and imbues the surroundings. If the soul is old and experienced it can cope with the impositions of karma and create itself anew, but if the soul is weak it quickly succumbs to external influences and produces 'creations' instead of purity of being.
The newborn child begins its new life with a clean slate...
When we are born we are innocent, the baby is completely innocent in its nature, and over the following months and years, all the scenes it experiences in its environment are mirrored in its mind. The way it is shaped by its environment, parents, family, and all the surroundings, which it soaks up like a sponge, creates its nature...
The environment is responsible for creating the new life of such a newborn child, like a sculptor creating a work of art with his hands...
… How to understand God, His true nature?
… The example of a newborn baby reflects the Divine Nature.
Consciousness by nature is completely pure and innocent, just like the nature of God...
The Consciousness of God is like the consciousness of a newborn innocent baby, just as a baby is trustful of its guardians and submits to them, so God, is trustful....
Just as an infant is innocent, so the nature of God is innocence...
Just as an infant has no external belongings or dirt in this world, so God is pure...
He is not influenced by any mixture of earthly consciousness of being someone in this world, of possessing something...
The external world does not impose anything on God, nor does God create anything that binds Him to the world of illusion.
God is a 'Love' that does not identify with the moods of a Child, a Friend, a Beloved, or a Parent... It is a love that is pure, unimaginably pure, and innocent of the innocence of an infant...
Withdrawal from this world, the renunciation of it frees one from the shallow influences and belongings of mundane or illusory moods of being someone, a child, friend, lover, husband, etc...
The state of innocence of Consciousness is the state of Divinity.... God in His Divine Nature, God as we know Him under many names, concluding with the highest essence of the Divinity of Sri Sri Radha Krsna, where there is no marriage, no lovers., or all external illusions and sexual imaginations... At the stage of Divinity of God, Sri Sri Radha Krsna is 'Innocence' and love as pure as the pure being of a newborn innocent baby... An inconceivable state of love beyond anything we know or can imagine... That is the state of „True Love”...
Hare Krsna!
PART 6
04.05.24
'GURU TATTVA CONTEMPLATION'
*… What is the essence of the Guru concept?
*… Those who seek wisdom should make effort to find 'their' guru. Then... By offering seva at the feet of the Guru and drawing his grace, all obscurations are purified...
Think of the Guru with every action you perform...
The Guru is he who gives the experience of darkness melting into light, maya dissolving into clarity and formation revealing wisdom.
Serve the Guru in every way and dedicate your life to him.
The Guru knows you inside and out.
*… Yes, we glorify the guru through sastras:
I bow to my Guru who opened my eyes, that were blinded by the darkness of ignorance, and revealed to me the light of knowledge.
But what else can we adopt?
*... Here is a further insight:
The source of meditation is the Guru.
The source of devotion is the Guru’s feet.
The source of mantra is the Guru’s word.
The source of awakening is the Guru’s grace.
Through the Reality of the Guru there is truth.
From the Light of the Guru there is luminosity.
Through the Bliss of the Guru there is joy.
It is the Guru who illuminates the mind, not the mind that illuminates the Guru.
Therefore...
Bow to the Guru’s feet and imbibe his essence. Thus you will attain knowledge and detachment. The karmas, which are at the root of your ignorance, will be destroyed and the cycle of rebirth will be brought to an end.
The Guru is beyond any description whatsoever. No imputed terms can describe him.
Contemplate this great mystery, and continually worship him with both mind and speech...
Haribol!
Part 7
12.06.2024
„WE FELL IN LOVE WITH 'YOGA MAYA'”
...We fell in love with 'Yoga Maya' instead of Krsna, Radha Krsna...
This expression has recently come to me, how are we to understand it in the more concrete sense of our being?
... It is simple, at a certain stage of understanding or knowledge of the bhakti-yoga system there is a tendency to project feelings instead of Krsna onto Yoga Maya. One seeks fulfillment, reaching the Divine, experiencing the Divine, experiencing Krsna directly, but is it possible at this stage? Unfortunately, fooling oneself into thinking that experiencing a relationship with the Divine is so easy and quick is just cheating.
Krsna takes the form of Prdumna, of His Illusion, the Divine Cupid, who deceives with His allure those who seek this type of happiness in a relationship with Him, or who wish to take Krsna away from His happiness, i.e. Srimati Radharani, the personification of happiness.
... So, why is this happening? Why do we get caught up in this illusion of Yoga Maya? Or why do we allow ourselves to be swayed?
... It is a try to search for shortcuts, mostly at the level of Kanistha, where one pretends to be an advanced person in front of the world and oneself, a good example here are the so-called Sahajiyas who interpret Krsna's pastimes in their own way (reading not authorized texts), and this is often allowed, as a so-called transition threshold to true 'bhakti'.
Is it better to let ourselves be carried away by this mystification and have a kind of Yoga Maya illusion of being with Krsna 'directly', although it is in reality only a shadow of a real relationship with God? Enjoying a reflection like in the mirror... Can one be satisfied with a shadow?... Some try...
The real starting position of bhakti-yoga is to understand that it is a long and demanding process of purification (Bg chapter 12, beginning from verses 8, 9, 10, etc.... if you can't do this do that...), which does not involve jumping into Krsna's pastimes in the 10th Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam what Srila Prabhupada often said, but the arduous and continuous climbing of successive degrees of self-realization beginning from Bhagavad-gita and first, successive Cantos of Srimad Bhagavatam... ...To stand in the position of Nistha-certainty in the practice of sadhana-bhakti ... But in order to understand this one has to step into the exalted position of Madhyama Adhikari (the position of the tutor, Krsna as the ‘setu’ - the bridge, the transparent medium), and this is already a 'higher school of driving' ... Here Maha Maya and Yoga Maya takes the form of serving such a Devotee who serves Krsna - being His Missionary, following Krsna's mission, teaching, example, Acarya... It is a high threshold where the relationship with Krsna is transferred to the level of true service and not looking for an opportunity to enjoy Krsna Himself or His companion Radharani, … or the ‘Laksmi’ of Narayana...
Hare Krsna!