"Though from the spiritual standpoint the whole universe is experienced here, from the physical point of view, millions of miles separate the planes.”
VASISTHA:
O Rama, Sarasvati and queen Lila immediately sat in deep meditation, or nirvakalpa samadhi.
They has risen above body-consciousness. Because they had given up all notions of the world, it had completely vanished in their consciousness. They roamed freely in their wisdom-bodies. Though it seemed that they had travelled millions of miles in space, they were still in the same 'room', but on another plane of consciousness. They saw all that was already in the mind of Sarasvati, and which Sarasvati wanted to show to queen Lila.
Having seen the oceans, mountains, the protectors of the universe, the kingdom of the gods, the sky and the very bowels of the earth, Lila saw her own house.
O Rama, the two ladies then entered into the holy man's house. The whole family was in mourning. On account of their grief the house itself had a depressing atmosphere. By the practice of the yoga of pure wisdom Lila had acquired that faculty by which her thoughts instantly materialised. She wished, 'These, my relations, should see me and Sarasvati as if we are ordinary womenfolk'. They appeared so to the mourning family. But the two ladies were of supernatural radiance which dispelled the gloom that pervaded the house. They asked the eldest son of the departed holy couple: "Tell us the cause of the sorrow which seems to afflict all these people here.”
The son of the holy couple replied: "O ladies, in this very house there lived a pious man and his devoted wife, who were both devoted to a righteous life. Recently, they abandoned their children and grandchildren, their house and their cattle, and ascended to heaven. Therefore, to us this whole world appears to be empty. Hearing this, Lila laid her hand on the young man's head. Instantly, he was relieved of his sorrow.
LILA
Lila asked Sarasvati, how was it that we were seen by this family of mine here, and we were not seen by my husband, who was ruling a kingdom when we visited him?”
SARASVATI
Then you were still clinging to your notion 'I am Lila'; now you have overcome that body-consciousness. Till the consciousness of duality is completely dispelled, you cannot act in the infinite consciousness; you cannot even understand it, even as one standing in the sun does not know the coolness of the shade of a tree. But, now if you go to your husband you will be able to deal with him as before. Lila, you and your husband have been through many incarnations, three of which you now know. In this incarnation the king has slipped deep into the snare of worldliness and he thinks 'I am the lord, I am strong, I am happy, etc.' Though from the spiritual standpoint the whole universe is experienced here, from the physical point of view, millions of miles separate the planes. In the infinite consciousness, in every atom of it, universes come and go like particles of dust in a beam of sunlight that shines through a hole in the roof. These come and go like ripples on the ocean.
LILA
Lila reminisced: O Divinity! Since emerging as a reflection in the infinite consciousness I have had 800 births. Today I see this. I have been a nymph, a vicious human woman, a serpent, a forest tribal woman. On account of evil deeds I became a creeper, and by the proximity of sages I became a sage's daughter; I became a king, and on account of evil deeds done then, I became a mosquito, a bee, a deer, a bird, a fish; and again I became a celestial, after which I became a tortoise, and a swan, and I became a mosquito again. I have also been a celestial nymph when other celestials (males) used to fall at my feet. Just as the scales of balance seesaw constantly, I have also been caught up in the seesaw of this repetitive existence (samsara).
RAMA
Holy sir, how was it possible for the two ladies to travel to distant galaxies in the universe, and how did they overcome the numerous barriers on the way?
VASISTHA
O Rama, where is universe, where are galaxies, where are barriers? The two ladies remained in the queen's inner apartment. It was there that the holy man Vasistha was ruling as king Viduratha; it was he who was king Padma before. All this happened in pure space: there is no universe, no distance, no barriers.
Conversing with each other, the two ladies emerged from the room and proceeded towards a village on top of a mountain.
On account of the intensity of her practice of the yoga of wisdom, Lila had acquired full knowledge of the past, present and future. She recollected the past and said to Sarasvati: "O Divinity, some time ago my husband and I lived an ordinary unenlightened life. We did not practice self-inquiry.”After saying this, Lila showed to Sarasvati her previous dwelling, and continued," See, this is my favourite calf. On account of my separation, it has been constantly weeping for the past eight days. In this place, my husband ruled the world. Because he was determined to be a great king soon, he had indeed become an emperor within the short span of eight days, though it looked like a long long time. In this house my husband lives, unseen. Here, in the space of the size of a thumb, we imagined the kingdom of my husband to be a million square miles. O Divinity, surely both my husband and I are of pure consciousness; yet, on account of the mysterious illusory power Maya, my husband's kingdom appears to encompass hundreds of mountains. This is truly marvellous. I wish to enter into the capital city where my husband rules. Come let us go there: for what is impossible of achievement to the industrious?”
Sarasvati and Lila rose into space and saw the whole creation; and beyond that was pure consciousness. Because of the essential nature of this infinite consciousness, universes, jiva and forms keep arising and again arising, and, by their own thought-force, return to a state of tranquility; all this is like the spontaneous play of a child.
Of those countless universes, O Rama, in some there are only plants; some have Brahma, Visnu, Rudra and others as the presiding deities, and some have none at all; in some there are only animals and birds; in some there is only an ocean; some are solid rocks; some are inhabited only by worms; some are pervaded by dense darkness; in some angels dwell; some are forever illumined; some seem to be falling in space towards destruction. Since consciousness exists everywhere for ever, creation of these universes and their dissolution also goes on everywhere forever. All these are held together by a mysterious omnipresent power. Rama, everything exists in the one infinite consciousness; everything arises from it; it alone is everything.
Having seen all this, Lila saw the inner apartment of the palace where the corpse of the king lay buried under a heap of flowers. There arose in her an intense wish to behold her husband's other life. Instantly, she broke through the summit of the universe and entered into the realm where her husband now ruled.
At the same time, a mighty king who ruled over the Sindhu region was laying a siege to her husband's kingdom. As the two ladies were coursing the space above the battlefield they encountered countless celestials who had assembled there to witness the battle and the exploits of the great heroes.
O Rama, still standing in the sky, Lila saw the two great armies closing in on each other, ready to engage themselves in battle.
As evening set in, Lila's husband held a council with his ministers concerning the events of the morning; and then he went to sleep.
The two ladies left the place where they stood watching the fierce battle and travelling like a breath of air, entered unobstructed into the closed apartment where the king was asleep.
RAMA
Holy one, the body seems to be so large and heavy; how does it enter through a minute hole?
VASISTHA
O Rama, it is impossible for one who is rooted in the idea that he is a physical body to pass through a subtle hole. It is the innermost conviction that 'I am the body which is obstructed thus in its movement' that in fact manifests as such obstruction: when the former is absent, the latter is absent, too. For the same infinite consciousness is also the individual consciousness (mind) and the cosmic space (material). Therefore the ethereal body can enter anything anywhere, and it goes where the wish of its heart leads.
Just as water ever remains water and flows down, and fire does not abandon its nature of rising up, consciousness remains for ever consciousness. But, he who has not understood this does not experience its subtlety or true nature. As is his understanding so is his mind, for it is the understanding that is the mind; yet, its direction can be changed by great effort. Normally, one's actions are in accordance with one's mind (i.e. one's understanding).
O Rama, everyone's consciousness is of this nature and power. In everyone's consciousness there is a different idea of the world. Death and such other experiences are like cosmic dissolution, the night of cosmic consciousness. When that comes to an end everyone wakes up to one's own mental creation, which is the materialisation of one's ideas, notions and delusions. Even as the cosmic being creates the universe after the cosmic dissolution, the individual creates his own world after his death.
The two ladies entered the apartment of the king like two divinities, resplendent like two moons. When Sarasvati asked the king who he was, the minister informed the ladies that he was Viduratha. Sarasvati then blessed Viduratha by laying her hand on his head, and inspired him to recollect the facts of his own previous lives. Instantly, the king remembered everything and asked Sarasvati," How is it that though it is hardly one day since I died, it seems that I have lived in this body a full seventy years?”
SARASVATI
O king, at the very moment of your death and in the very place of your death, all this that you are seeing here manifested. All this is where the holy man Vasistha lived, in the village on the hill. That is his world, and in that world is the world of king Padma, and in that world of king Padma is the world that you are in. Living in it you think"These are my relations, these are my subjects, these are my ministers, these are my enemies.' You think that you are ruling, you are engaged in religious rites; you think that you have been fighting with your enemies and you were defeated by them; you think you are seeing us, worshipping us, and that you are receiving enlightenment from us. All this took no time to happen, even as in no time during a dream a whole life's drama is enacted. In reality, you are unborn nor do you die. To the enlightened person there is only one infinite consciousness, and there is no notion of 'I am' or 'these are'. (While Vasistha said this, another day came to an end.)
To an immature and childish person who is confirmed in his conviction that this world is real, it continues to be real. He who sees the glory of palaces, elephants and cities does not see the infinite consciousness which alone is true. This universe is but a long dream. The ego-sense and also the fancy that there are others, are as real as dream-objects. The sole reality is the infinite consciousness which is omnipresent, pure, tranquil, omnipotent, and whose very body and being is absolute consciousness (therefore not an object, not knowable): wherever this consciousness manifests in whatever manner, it is that. Because the substratum (the infinite consciousness) is real, all that is based on it acquires reality, though the reality is of the substratum alone. This universe and all beings in it are but a long dream. To me you are real, and to you I am real; even so the others are real to you or to me. And, this relative reality is like the reality of the dream-objects.
O king, you shall die in this war and then you will regain your previous kingdom. After your death in this body, you will come over to the previous city with your daughter and your ministers. We two shall go now as we came; and all of you will of course follow us in due course, for the nature of the motion of a horse, an elephant and a camel is different!
VASISTHA
Even as Sarasvati was saying this to the king, a royal messenger rushed in to announce that the enemy forces had entered the capital and were destroying it.
In the meantime, the queen arrived there. The lady-in-waiting announced her to the king.
She said," Your Majesty, all the other ladies of the harem have been violently dragged away by the enemy. From this indescribable calamity that has befallen us, only Your Majesty can redeem us.”
The king bowed to Sarasvati and excused himself: "I shall myself go to the battlefront, O Goddess, to deal with the enemy; and this, my wife, will wait upon you during that time.”
The enlightened Lila was amazed to see that the queen was a complete replica of herself. She asked Sarasvati," O Divinity, how is it that she is exactly what I am? Whatever I was in my own youth, she is now. What is the secret of this? Also: all these ministers, etc., who are here, are the same that were there, in our palace. If they are but a reflection or the objects of our fancy, are they sentient and are they also endowed with consciousness?”
SARASVATI
O Lila, whatever vision arises within oneself, that is immediately experienced. Consciousness (as subject) itself becomes, as it were, the object of knowledge. When in consciousness the image of the world arises, at that very instant, it becomes so. Time, space, duration and objectivity do not arise from matter; for then they would be material. What is reflected in one's consciousness shines outside also.
What is regarded as the real objective world experienced in the waking state is no more real than that experienced during sleep (dream). During sleep, the world does not exist; and during the waking state, the dream does not exist! Even so, death contradicts life: while living, death is non-existent, and in death, life is non-existent. That which holds together either experience is absent in the other.
One cannot say that either is real, or unreal, but one can only say that their substratum alone is real. The universe exists in Brahman only as a word, an idea. It is neither real nor unreal: just as a snake-in-the-rope is neither real nor unreal. Even so is the existence of the jiva. This jiva experiences its own wishes. It fancies that it experiences what it had experienced before; and some others are new experiences. They are similar at times and dissimilar at times. All these experiences, though essentially unreal, appear to be real. Such is the nature of these ministers and others. Even so this Lila exists as the product of the reflection in consciousness. Even so are you, me and all others. Know this and rest in peace.
Swami Venkatesananda, The Concise Yoga Vasistha
State University of New York Press (October 1984), pp. 57-63
Leo Tolstoy: "Our life is but a dream about a more real one — the divine one.”
Polyana estate in May 1908 by Sergey
Prokudin-Gorsky. The only known color
photograph of the writer. (Wikipedia)
Leo Tolstoi, Voice of Universal Life magazine"
“On December 12, 1996, at 5:30 p.m. Arwinder was asked where was this fabulous
City that Shri Mataji and he had strolled around — whether it was in the
universe, within himself, or wherever? He replied that he did not know. He was
told to try harder. He closed his eyes in concentration, recalling that there
were many people, buildings, a river flowing, bridges, birds flying around, and
Cool Breeze blowing. He even ascertained that the average distance Shri Mataji
took him for a walk was that from his home to Bonanza Supermarket (now IGA),
just over a kilometer. However, he could not understand or determine that the
City was within himself.
This handicap was similar as that of his brother Kash who always felt that his
spiritual body was elsewhere — even after he knew that everything was within
himself. It was impossible for any of them to comprehend that the universe
existed within themselves! This is the microcosm of Shri Sandhya Shri Nirmala
Devi, the biblical Kingdom of God, the Quran's Regions in their Souls, the Sri
Guru Granth Sahib's Imperishable Home, and the Inner Reality that numerous Vedic
and Buddhist texts expound. This is what great realized souls meant by the
microcosm in the macrocosm.”
SHRI ADI SHAKTI: THE KINGDOM OF GOD, 1999, p. 238
Note: The Sahasrara (Kingdom of God) is still impossible for me to grasp despite
years of listening to those who entered it i.e., entered"that realm where is
the Reality.” The overwhelming evidence of its existence compeled me to believe
it. The scriptures, Jesus, Shri Mataji and the DEVi proclaimed its existence
within all humans. Despite faith in its existence I still have to enter and
experience the Kingdom of God (Sahasrara).
Most of Her devotees believe my children were possessed when they entered the
Sahasrara. They still do. That's why Shri Mataji was also skeptical: "I thought
that how I will talk to people about it because no one would understand Me.” No
one understood Jesus too when He declared its existence two thousand years ago.
Two thousand years ago humans beings were far less educated and ignorant that
the fools Shri Mataji had as disciples.
“But those who have got Realization will enter into the Kingdom of God. You have
to enter into the Kingdom of God here, as I say, in the Seventh Chakra.”The Paraclete Shri Mataji
The Paraclete Shri Mataji "Today we are celebrating the opening of the Sahasrara (Kingdom of God within). On this day I must say it was a Great Happening that took place on all the humanity. It was such an achievement, which I never realized before. Now I can see that without Self-Realization it would have been impossible to talk to people.
Then this happened! I thought that how I will talk to people about it because no one would understand Me and it would be a big mistake on My part to say something about Sahasrara because even about Sahasrara (Kingdom of God within) nowhere in the scriptures something was described. It was absolutely an ambiguous description I would say where people could not even have thought there is a realm beyond Sahasrara, and one has to enter that realm where is the Reality.
That time what I saw around Me was darkness and unless and until there are many Lights, people will never realize that how important it is to have Light.”
The Paraclete Shri Mataji Cabella, Italy—June 9, 1996
"Today we are celebrating the resurrection of Christ. With it we also have to celebrate the resurrection of human beings, of Sahaja Yogis, who have been resurrected as realised souls. With that we have to understand that we enter into a new awareness. He had to come down and again to show to this world that you are the eternal life, that you lead a life that is spiritual, which never perishes. You have to rise, into that new realm, which is the Realm of God Almighty, what you call the Kingdom of God.
"By saying there's no God, God doesn't disappear. He is very much there. Sahaja Yoga is the only way you can prove the existence of God and all that is said so far about all these Incarnations because the Seventh Chakra is now open. You get your Realization, and you become the spirit. It is so imminent that the Seventh Chakra (Kingdom of God within) had to be opened so that you pass from one life level to another level.”
The Paraclete Shri Mataji Geneva, Switzerland—June 13, 1985
"The seat of faith ... is not consciousness but spontaneous religious experience, which brings the individual's faith into immediate relation with God.
Here we must ask: Have I any religious experience and immediate relation to God, and hence that certainty which will keep me, as an individual, from dissolving in the crowd?
To this question there is a positive answer only when the individual is willing to fulfill the demands of rigorous self-examination and self-knowledge. If he follows through his intention, he will not only discover some important truths about himself, but will also have gained a psychological advantage: he will have succeeded in deeming himself worthy of serious attention and sympathetic interest. He will have set his hand, as it were, to a declaration, of his own human dignity and taken the first step towards the foundations of his consciousness — that is, towards the unconscious, the only accessible source of religious experience.”
Carl G. Jung, The Undiscovered Self
Little, Brown & Company, and Atlantic Monthly Press; 1957, 1958
"Turiya, an ancient Hindu analysis of consciousness identifies four primary states of awareness: waking, dreaming, dreamless sleep and a fourth condition known as turiya (literally," The Fourth"In Sanskrit.) Attainment of Turiya was possible only through the practice of meditation. It was viewed as an important clue to the nature of consciousness.
In meditations to reach Turiya, the activities of thinking and imagining are allowed to die down completely, leaving consciousness to reflect upon itself. Turiya resembles dreamless sleep, in that both states are blissful. Whereas awareness in dreamless sleep is very dim in Turiya it is exceedingly bright. In its clarity, Turiya is said to resemble the transient, spontaneous mystical experience called ANANDAMayA.
One of the oldest and most important texts in the Hindu tradition, the Mandukya Upanishad, describes Turiya as follows (Prabhavananda and Manchester translation):
The Fourth, say the wise, is not subjective experience, nor objective experience, nor experience intermediate between these two, nor is it a negative condition which is neither consciousness nor unconsciousness. It is not the knowledge of the senses, nor is it relative knowledge, nor yet inferential knowledge. Beyond the senses, beyond the understanding, beyond all expression, is The Fourth. It is pure unitary consciousness, wherein awareness of the world and of multiplicity is completely obliterated. It is ineffable peace. It is the supreme good. It is One without a second. It is the Self. Know it alone!
For most people, the perfect knowledge of one's self-nature available in Turiya is obscured in the other states of consciousness. When one is able to retain this knowledge under all circumstances, one has attained the condition known as turiya-atita ("The state beyond The Fourth"), which is synonymous with living liberation — JIVAN MUKTI.”
Leornard George, Ph.D., Alternative Realities
Facts on File, Inc., 1995 p. 283-84
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