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Yoga Is The Science Of Body, Mind, Consciousness And Soul

Yoga is the science of body, mind, consciousness, and soul, a path to union with the divine. Reflect on your life's journey since encountering this teaching. Consider what has changed within you. Authentic yoga is a balanced, scientific system proven to benefit health at all levels. It is for everyone, regardless of age or condition, and should be practiced gently, not as extreme physical display. Many modern approaches are commercial and harmful, focusing on difficult postures that discourage people. True realization comes not from torturing the body but through mercy, kindness, devotion, and the guru's grace. The Self, the eternal seer within, is unchanging and beyond time and space. The physical body is the necessary instrument for attaining this realization in the mortal world.

"Yoga is the science of body, mind, consciousness, and soul. What we call yoga is the way to God."

"Self-realization can only be realized here in this mortal world. The body is the instrument through which you can work to get realization."

Filming location: Czech Republic

Good evening, everyone. I imagine you are not so happy to see me here, as everyone was looking forward to seeing Swāmījī. Unfortunately, we received a message that on his way back from Brno, he received an invitation and will be arriving later. So we do not know exactly when Swāmījī will come. In a way, I am the least suitable person to be sitting here now, because the topic is "Yoga and Daily Life: 40 Years in Czechoslovakia," and I am not from here. That is one of the typical jokes, is it not? But there are many here who know. So, I would encourage us to take this evening, especially the time before Swāmījī arrives, to share some experiences from these forty years. I guess you may not be directly prepared for that. But let us have, not a meditation, but something like a meditation—one of the techniques from our yoga system. This involves going back in time in our lives, going back or forward, and seeing how our lives have developed. So, let us go back for a moment to the time when we came into contact with Swāmījī. For a moment, please relax and close your eyes. Be aware of yourself and your present life situation. Now, think about your life and how it developed. Think about your life before you met Swāmījī and came into contact with yoga. How was your food? How were your friends and your relationships? What made you busy? What were your hobbies? What were your expectations and hopes for the future? Now imagine, just for a moment, that you had not met Swāmījī and had not started with yoga. How might your life have developed? How would your life be today? How would your personality be today? But it did happen. You came into contact with Swāmījī and became a practitioner of yoga. Now, just think for a moment: what actually changed in your life? Perhaps there were certain special events that influenced you. Try to understand how you developed, how your life developed. Thank you, Swāmījī. It is not very often that we speak on a Saturday evening at the satsaṅg, but today is a very special occasion, so we are allowing this. Tomorrow, the 3rd of March, marks forty years since Swāmījī first came to the Czech Republic. It is not usual for us to speak at a Saturday evening satsaṅg, but tomorrow is a very, very special occasion: forty years of Yoga in Daily Life in the Czech Republic. The organizers told me one hour before the satsaṅg that it was necessary for an old disciple to speak. So I thanked them. I told them, "We do not know how old everybody is." I did not have much time to prepare myself. In those thanks to Swāmījī, it is mostly thanks for the love and patience he has with us. Especially in Europe, we are here somehow like raw material. I recall a picture from the Kumbh Melā in Ilāhābād from 2001, to say something about myself. Swāmījī invited the Mahā Maṇḍaleśvaras to our camp. We were cooking all day, and Swāmījī came with all the Mahāmaṇḍaleśvaras. Suddenly, he said to serve the food to the Mahāmaṇḍaleśvaras, and then chaos started—taking the plates, putting the meal there, and beginning to serve them. I had the opportunity to give the food to Swāmījī. I knelt down in front of Swāmījī and wanted to put the food on the small table in front of him. Swāmījī had some things on the table. I was in front of Swāmījī for a while and started to try if I could push those things with the thālī to make room for both. No, they could not both fit, so I pushed the things more. Now I see where my patience and my humbleness were. It is like that with us. We think we have everything within us, but we do not know how deep it is. It is rather shallow, and we have a lot of work ahead of us. We think we are deep, but it is not very deep. We have a lot of work to do. So once again, in the name of you all, I would like to thank Swāmījī again for his patience and love. Śrī Deep Nārāyaṇ Bhagavān, Śrī Śrī Devī Īśvara Mahādeva, Satguru Swāmī Madhavānandjī Bhagavān, Satya Sanātana Dharma kī. Blessings to all dear ones, spiritual seekers around the world. The blessing is coming to you from Mahāprabhujī’s āśrama. Many of you know that today there was a scientific conference which once more proved and declared yoga and life as a scientific system. It is the fourth time the research work shows that it is the system which has helped humans to improve their health physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually. Today, there were many experts who gave presentations about the benefits of Yoga in Daily Life and the success in that. Out of all this, there was one very critical case: a hernia in the spinal column. One of our yoga practitioners, Dr. Eva—what is her second name? She is a doctor, a specialist in the spinal column, an orthopedic doctor. She has proven that through the practice of Yoga in Daily Life, the system and discipline have successfully cured it. There was another very beautiful talk, especially for the nurses. I think it was Dr. Bednář? Who was talking about nurses? Dr. ... He expressed his sympathy towards the nurses. One nurse, per day, bends forward and back hundreds of thousands of times. How difficult it is for them to care for intensive care patients, moving people, giving them new dressings, or changing the bed sheets. Lucky are they who have few kilos, but unlucky are they who have many kilos. Their nurses are suffering. So, at least out of respect and kindness to our nurses, we should reduce the kilos before going to the hospital. There is one island between Fiji and Hawaii called Samoa. Samoan people are very tall and very heavy. Their body construction, their anatomy, is very heavy—bones and muscles and so on. They also used to come to New Zealand and this part of the world. One of them was ill and brought to the hospital, but two or three persons could not lift that person. It was an emergency case. So they brought a bed with a lift, imported from America with express transfer. They lifted the person with the lift to change the clothes. So, it is not easy for the nurses. You know, there is one lady—I do not know what she was—but she had so many kilos, and now she has become a star, a film star. When she had to go to some house, they had to break the door because she is so big they cannot bring her through the door. She cannot walk. She had to lie down, and six people had to carry her. Did you see her? Did you see this advertising? It was last year sometime, around the same time. Well, Dr. Roman made beautiful research work, especially on how beneficial Yoga in Daily Life is for them. Also, for the students, it was very beautifully spoken: the education and the life given to them. So, all in all, it was very beautiful and successful, and I would like to congratulate them and thank them for their research work. Every teacher should work in this way. Now, you see, yoga is yoga. Yoga is the science of body, mind, consciousness, and soul. What we call yoga is the way to God. Because yoga means to become one with Brahman. What we call the ātmā-sākṣātkār, the Self-realization, is through yoga. And yoga is blessed by Lord Śiva, the Swayambhū. So, yoga is that balancing principle in the universe. Harmonizing and uniting are the principles of yoga. One is the Brahman, and two is the changeable, not a reality. It is said that a yogī can expand his consciousness to 2,100 solar systems. It is in Cauda Loka, Ikisho Brahmāṇḍa, the fourteen different worlds—seven below and seven above. Holy Gurujī says in his bhajan. So the difference is that it is called the Mūlādhāra Cakra. Seven cakras below and seven cakras above. At the point where the beginning is, the seat of Gaṇeśa, and Mūlādhāra is the seat of Gaṇeśa. So Mūlādhāra is not in the way you understand. It is a border between the animal and human consciousness. And Lord Śiva himself is there, known as Paśupati Mahādeva. Everything plays in this body. Yathā brāhmaṇḍe tathā piṇḍe: what is in the universe exists in this body. What does not exist in this body does not exist in the universe. So in each atom of the body, there is its own phenomenon, its own creation. There are millions of solar systems within us, in every living being, in every creature; in every atom, there is like one Brahman, one solar system. Only through practicing the higher techniques of yoga can you realize that kind of consciousness to see everything. The seer is always there. The seer does not change. When you dream and when you wake up, both times the level of consciousness is changing, but the seer, as your Self, does not change. Therefore, that is called unchangeable, eternal, everlasting: nirāṇyan, akhaṇḍa, and achala. Eternal means one with the whole universe. Akhaṇḍa: immortal, undestroyable. Nirañjan: spotless. Nitya: everlasting. So that is that Ātmā that sees everywhere, that does not travel anywhere. Therefore, it is beyond space and time, one without second. According to this point of view, there is no time. Time does not exist. Time is made by humans, the mathematics, what we call. Time is only counted with the atoms. Every atom in the universe that is moving—its distance from one to another has been put into time. There, put the speed, the time, the distance, etc. But in the yoga where you become one, there is no time, no distance. There is divinity and oneness. So that is the aim of yoga. But what we do, the physical part of yoga, means to realize everything in this life. In order to realize Self-realization, we need a healthy body. Why? To live long. Why? To achieve everything in this life. The body does not die. In reality, it does not die. It is the elements merging into their origin, so even the body does not die. We say dehānta, it is a separation. So as long as there is yoga, the body keeps together and healthy. Now, if you practice that kind of yoga scientifically, according to the ancient authentic literatures and what was declared by the great yogīs, that kind of yoga has success. Others, what we see—a lot of activities of yoga, every corner of the street and every middle of the street, there are yoga centers. But the way they are teaching is not healthy, and it is not commercial. People are manipulated in this way, just to show the young anatomy of young people. Young people are, of course, more flexible, and all are attracted to this. Many people are frightened when they see how the yoga postures are, and many people do not want to go to practice. You put one leg behind your head and neck, and the other behind your neck, too. Now, a 70-year-old person hears about yoga, how healthy it is, and when they see this picture, that 70- or 80-year-old person will say, "I cannot imagine that yoga is healthy." So many people give advertising in magazines and posters with such complicated postures. That is not good advertising for yoga. So yoga is meant for all, without differences of age or gender. Everyone can practice. Even if you are lying in intensive care, you can practice yoga. Through yoga practices, through practicing your mantra, your willpower improves. Mantra means your ātma-bala and saṅkalpa śakti. Ātma-bala means willpower, and Saṅkalpa Śakti means what you wish should come true. Each breath movement is yoga. Just to become aware. Immense energies are there in the universe. That energy will never be at an end. That energy is provided to us by the cosmic mother. It is a cordless connection—a wireless connection between God and devotee, between guru and disciple. Between the cosmic Self and the body is a cordless connection. That is why you think about God; you do not know where He is sitting. Or you think about Gurudev; you do not know where he is, thinking where he is sitting, but you think, and the connection is there. That is cordless. So for every individual, there is access, the code. How many? There are billions. You see how many billion people are in the world. Now, in this modern technology, everyone has a mobile phone. Some have a few telephones. So, can you see how many waves are there? Cordless, but they are all connected to that one center. Similarly, we are all united. We are all connected to one God or one Gurudev. That is the specialty of those ancient techniques: to get more energy in order to get Self-realization. It is a cosmic law. Self-realization can only be realized here in this Mṛtyuloka, in this mortal world. After departure from this physical body, you know what it is, how it is. You have feelings: happiness, unhappiness, suffering, pain, pleasure. Because pain, pleasure, happiness, and unhappiness are in that jīvātmā, not in this body. The body is feeling because that Self is present there. When the Self goes away, you can do anything to this body; it does not feel anything. So it is the Self, and the body is the instrument. It is that tool through which you can work to get realization. So though the body is not reality, without the body, nothing is reality. So without a body, nothing is there for you. As long as you have a body, you are welcomed at home. When you leave your body and come and knock on the door at night, the whole family will be frightened. They will call me at midnight, or they will call the psychiatric doctor, and you say, "No, mother, it is I." And mother is shivering, "Oh, God." Father, Dad, open the door. He will put a pillow on his nose. You see, what is the relation? This relation was only to the body. So this is Mṛtyuloka. Therefore, we have to come to beyond. So time is there where some existence is in individual form. But beyond that, there is no time. And when you are beyond that, everything is timeless; then it is everlasting. So many yoga practices being done around the world are incorrect and more commercialized. Too much stretching of the body is harmful. At old age, your ligaments will become very loose. Joints will suffer, the spine will suffer. Therefore, we have to accept, adopt, and practice very gentle, easy postures. Be sure you will not get Self-realization through torturing the body. You will not realize God with some postures, but through that mercy in your heart: kindness, love, equal vision, devotion. Ultimately, it is said, "Guru Kripāhi Kevalam"—only the mercy of the Gurudev. Guru Nānak Sāhib said, "May there be hundreds of moon rises and may there be thousands of sunrises. All cannot make the light in our heart. Without Gurudeva, in the heart is darkness." So that enlightenment is only through Guru Kṛpā. And when the Guru Kṛpā is there, if something goes wrong, then no one can help you. It is said, when God makes some mistake, Gurudev can correct it, but when Gurudev is doing something or is angry, even God cannot help you. That is why it is said, "Gurur Brahmā, Gurur Viṣṇu, Gurur Devo Maheśvara, Gurur Sākṣāt Brahma, Tasmai Śrī Gurave Namaḥ"—this mantra you know. Therefore, people who practice out of their ignorance will damage their body. Nowadays, so many people develop meditation techniques out of their own kind of psychology. That is not good. That definitely will bring disorder in your psyche. Therefore, we should practice those exercises and follow those masters who have the abilities to lead thyself to the Self. So we should not run toward extremism, but gently, slowly. Finally, the realization is there: how your Guru Bhakti develops, and how your mantras [work]. So with this, it was nice research work, and the next one will be, I think, in Slovakia, and that will be another research work on the body, mind, and spiritual development through Yoga in Daily Life. So we thank you, organizers, and wish you all the best. Forty years is not a little. More than half my life, I became old here. I became old, but I told you, you should not become old. Okay, this is the order. So thank you.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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