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Part 1: The Śiva Purāṇa on Desire, Power, and Meditation Oṁ Śrī Śaya Namaḥ, Kratuṇḍa Mahākāya, Sūrya Koṭi Sama Prabha, Nirvighnaṁ Kuru Me Deva, Sarva Kāryeṣu Sarvadā, Oṁ Śrī Gaṇapataya Namaḥ, Oṁ Śrī Sarasvatī Namaḥ, Sarasvatī Namastubhyaṁ Varade Kāmarūpiṇī, Vidyārambhaṁ Kariṣyāmi, Siddhir Bhavatu Me Sadā, Oṁ Śrī Guruve Namaḥ, Gurur Brahmā, Gurur Viṣṇuḥ,... Guruṁ guru viṣṇu guru devī maheśvara guru śakṣād parabrahma tasmai śrī guruve namaḥ. śive sarvārtha sādhike śaraṇye tryambake gaurī nārāyaṇī namo’stu te. Om namo gaurī śivāya namaha. Om sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ, sarve santu nirāmayāḥ, sarve bhadrāṇi paśyantu, mā kaścid duḥkha bhāg bhavet. Asato mā sad gamaya, tamaso mā jyotir gamaya, mṛtyor mā amṛtam gamaya. Om śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ. Oh, sahānā, I would like to salute the Supreme Lord, God, and Guru, and all the sages, ṛṣis, munis, saints, and all the persons who contributed in my life. I would like to thank everyone who is participating here and who is listening to me from this webcast around the world. I would like to welcome you, and please accept my humble greetings from Achārya Rajan Sarna. I welcome everyone at this time. Parampitā Parameśwar, Guru, Brahma Viṣhwa Maheśwar, Gurudeva, and all the other sages of the world who have passed down this knowledge to the books till today. For all of them, I bow my head. I touch my feet on the lotus feet of all of them. With the permission of Mother Sarasvatī and with the permission of Lord Gaṇeśa, today we are going to recite the Śiva Purāṇa, the second chapter of the Rudra Saṁhitā. In the Rudra Saṁhitā, we are going to explore chapters 7 to 10, which are very important and relevant to this modern life and modern time. It talks about money, power, and sex. What can the Śiva Purāṇa say? So what is the version of the Śiva Purāṇa? What is the perception? How can we control? And what is the meaning of desire that we are going to explain? Study and practice. So here, till today, whatever is the doubt in the world of Kāmadeva, and in this way, of Sandhyā, of Śakti, of Rāga, and this also of Kambhāsana, what does our Śrī Purāṇa say for this? What is the version in it? What is the vision? What we have to do to get rid of today’s people who are so busy with their work? And what can we do to balance the burden of our practice? This Śiva Purāṇa has given us divine knowledge, which the sages have worshipped for thousands of years, and the knowledge that has been given from the creation of this holy book that we are listening to now. We are grateful for that. Who are the greats? And you will take full advantage of this. The importance of this Śiva Purāṇa is that wherever you are listening to it, you will get a lot of benefits to take you away from there. But you can sit and listen to it wherever you are, however it is. As far as this voice is reaching, you can use the Śiv word of the Śivapurāṇa. With the words of Lord Śiva, and with the words of Amṛta Tulya, and with the story of Amṛta Tulya, you are not only purified from the impurities, but you also get rid of the sins of many lifetimes. I will continue to elaborate on the importance of this Śivarātra. But before I start, I would like to begin with Gaṇeśa Bhāvanā and Gaṇeśa Abhinandan. Jai Bhullī, Gaḍapatī Mahārāj, Ghee Shrī Nandana Śrī Gaurī Gaṇapati Gade Jai Bholi Gaṇeśa Mahārāj kī. Without the permission of Lord Gaṇeśa, without His blessing, no obstacle or problem can be solved. With His blessing, this story begins. The story of Satya Yuga and Devadideva. The story of Devadideva, Mahādeva, Amṛtulya Bāṇī. And the story of Pārvatī and all the deities living around him. In the Śiva Purāṇa, Brahmājī had given birth to all his sons for the continuity of the universe. The seventh ṛṣi had arrived, and along with the seventh ṛṣi, all the other ṛṣis were born: Marīci ṛṣi, Atri ṛṣi, Pulaha ṛṣi, Pulastya ṛṣi, Aṅgirā ṛṣi, Kratu ṛṣi, Vasiṣṭha ṛṣi, Nārada ṛṣi, Dakṣa, and Bhṛgu. All of them had been born. After that, Lord Brahmā asks Nārada, "Hey Brahmājī, you have given birth to Kāmadeva. What is the secret of Kāmadeva? And how did you get the desire to create Kāmadeva in your mind?" He asks Brahmā, and Brahmājī says, "Hey Nārada, hey Muniśreṣṭha, what you have asked, I will explain it in detail. That Nārada, you are a scholar. Why did I create Kāmadeva? I will tell you in detail." When Nāradjī asks, Brahmājī tells him one by one. And for us, Nārada is asking our curiosity; it seems like this. Brahmajī tells about Kāmadeva. And Brahmajī says that all the sages came in the world, but Nārada felt in my mind that there is one such thing, such a son who is beautiful and very attractive and who attracts everyone in the world. I had the intention of having such a son. That is why, with this desire, I promised Kāmadeva for the creation, and I have moved forward according to that. So here is the story here in Śrīpuraṁ, in the second chapter of the Saṁhitā, second Samitā, uh, Rudra Samitā. In this chapter, Nārada is asking to Brahmā, and Brahmā is the creator, the father, supreme master. And he’s asking, "Oh, Brahmā, oh my Lord, oh my father, dearest my father, can you please bless me? And tell me, so why do you create the Kāmadeva? Kāmadeva is the lord of sex, lord of attraction, lord of beauty. And why do you create the Kāmadeva? Deva is the divine god. Kāma is the desire, especially the affair, sex, and attractions. And why you create Kāmadeva? So what was the mystery? Can you tell me? Can you please explain?" Then Brahmā replied to Nārada, "Oh Nārada, it’s my great pleasure. Why don’t I tell you? This is the important thing you need to know. You are the sarva śreṣṭha muni, you are the great," says so. "You deserve to know these things. Why I create Kāmadeva? Kāmadeva is one of the attraction, beauty, and wonderful person who can attract anyone in this world, whoever comes with the body. The physical body he will be attracted with Kāmadeva, Kāmadeva, the desire, especially the sexual desire, especially the attraction, beauty." And Brahmā is replying to Nārada, "Oh Nārada, I created many sages, many saints, and many elements of this universe. So in this universe that I created, many sages like Bhṛgu and Aṅgirā, Dakṣa, Nārada, Marīci, Atri, Pulaha, Pulastya, and Kratu, and Vasiṣṭha, many sages and saints, already have been created, but I have got great desire that there should be someone who can attract anyone, otherwise life will not be beautiful. Sometimes, to balance life, one person is much needed. So that’s why, with that great desire, that beautiful desire, Brahmā created Kāmadeva." And when the thought came in his mind: Kāmadeva. The minute Brahmā thought about Kāmadeva, he was shaking there, and from his womb, from his mind, Kāmadeva started to work. Even Brahmā is affected, and slowly, slowly, Kāmadeva... time to come to outside in this world, and he finally arrived on this earth, and he’s asking, "Oh, Brahmā, oh the dearest father, why did you create me so? I am so beautiful, everyone is admiring me. I’m the handsome person, most handsome person, and no one can, uh, they stop their temptation. They, everyone, can attract with me. So, what’s the reason? What’s the reason of this beauty? What should I have to do? What’s my responsibility?" He’s asking continuously to Brahmā, and Brahmā said, "Oh my beautiful son, you are wonderful. Look at you, you have got beautiful eyes and a face, a handsome body, and from toes to head, look at this everywhere, the beauty. And the beauty is attraction, and that is needed in this universe, and your duty is to go everywhere, and you can attract everywhere in the three lokas: marty loka, svarga loka, pātāla. Everywhere you can go easily, wherever you want, and you can stay without knowing, without giving information. You can recite people’s body. And automatically, you can create the beauty and attraction. Your duty is that you have to go there, so that it will help me to create and to the creation of this universe. That’s why I gave it to you." Then Nārada asks, "How did you get this in your mind before birth? And how did you give it a name? How did you name it?" When he says, then in the answer to Nārada, Brahmājī says, "O Nārada, when the thought of creating Kāmadeva came to my mind, at that time my mind was shaken. The effect of Kāmadeva is so strong, it shook me with pride. Even in my mind, the thought of going here and there began to come. That is why Kāmadeva is so powerful. So when he was born, his beauty started to spread. Kāmadeva was discussed all over the world. He is so beautiful that from his nails to his head, his beauty is indescribable. Whoever sees him becomes attracted to him. That is why Kāmadeva asks, 'Lord, why did you give birth to me?'" Then Brahmā says, "O Kāmadeva, it is your responsibility to go near people and to come and go in all three worlds, and you do not need anyone’s permission. You are a yogī, a siddha puruṣa, and you will keep attracting anything, anything, any soul. And you will travel around the world, and for this, for the balance of creation, you are needed." So Kāmadeva always asks, "Oh, the father, then what’s my name? So, what is my name?" First of all, you know that when somebody comes, then the father or parents give the name when you are born. In spirituality, the guru gives the spiritual name. In the same way, Kāmadeva also asked, "What’s my name, my dear father Brahmā? So what is my best name?" Then Brahmā said, "Well, one of my sons, the sages, among the many sages, one of my sages already created your name. You are the Manthama, that means like when you come, mantha ma, so when you come in my mind, you already shake my body. That’s why your first name is Manthama. What is his name? Manthama. Man means like mind. Thama is shaking. His mind was shaking and trembling. So that’s why his first name was Kāmadeva’s first name is Manthama." Kāmadeva kā pahalā nām kyā hai ki manthāmā hai. Jab Brahmā jī ke mastiṣka meṁ āge, jab wo bhruṅd meṁ āye the, usī samay meṁ mastiṣka ko hilāne lage. Isile pehla nām terā hai ki manthāmā. Tab kyā hai ki nām se vikhyāt ho jāve, to manobhāv se āp rahoge, aur tumhāre samān dusarā koī nahīṁ hai, atā kām rūp hone kā kāraṇ, tum kām nām se bhī vikhyāt rahoge. Ki, you are the most beautiful person on this planet, and no one can defeat you. So that’s why your name is Kāma. Kāma is attraction, beauty, desire. So that’s why your name is Kāma. So Kāma Basana. We normally call it Kāma Basana. But the girl’s name is Kāma Deva. So your name is Kāma. Brahmā told, "Well, your name is various. Your name is Kāma Deva, Manmatha, and attraction, beauty. But normally, people will be popular as a Kāmadeva." And Brahmā said, "Well, that’s good to know, my dearest father. So what is my other duty? What do I have to do?" And he said, "Those people who are in total detachment with this universe, those people who is not interested anymore with my creation? Then you can go and encourage them, so that’s your duty." So the karma deva, the Brahmā, is asking to give the instruction to karma deva, and, "Well, okay, whatever you order me, I’ll follow. My Lord, my dearest father." Then Kāmadeva started, and Kāmadeva started to travel anywhere else. And we were asked the way we were to see the Kāmadeva. The people make us like in an addiction. They lost, like, the yesterday we mentioned Nārada story, so. Whatever the beautiful things come in front of you, then everyone is attracted. That’s Kāmadeva’s duty. He started duty according to Brahmā’s instruction. So always, Brahmā instructs, Viṣṇu instructs, meditate. And whenever you are born, the first thing you need to know is meditation. Nowadays we go to colleges, schools, and gurukul ashrams. So, the best knowledge comes from meditation. So knowledge from the books is only the information, it’s not wisdom. Whatever we know up to now, many philosophies, many principles, many books, many scriptures we read, and we become, and we say that, so-called intellectual person, but until you do the meditation, until you follow the real truth, the eternal connection with God and Guru, the person is not the wisdom, not the wise. That is not called the wisdom; that is only the information. If you know how to swim, principally, theoretically, and the minute you enter the ocean, you cannot do anything. You cannot use that formula, whatever you repeated in your home, the theory. So that’s why you need to be practical. So practical knowledge is the wisdom, and wisdom comes through the eternal meditation, and that meditation, the Śiva Purāṇa, is encouraging everyone every time. Every chapter is to meditate. Meditation is one of the panaceas for your every desire, every sickness, every difficulty, material difficulties, worldly difficulties, heavenly difficulties, and karmic difficulties as well. In the Śiva Purāṇa, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa—so what is it that everyone prays for? That you meditate. Dhyāna vinā dhyāna na āve gyāna. Brahmā jī says that Kāmadeva, son, you have the power, but the power can be misused. That is why you should meditate on it. Meditate on whom? Meditate on Śivjī. Śivjī teaches us how to use the power. So for this, Kāmadeva goes for Śivjī’s meditation. So I am talking about, in the Śiva Purāṇa, the power. So, I talk: Kāmadeva is the sex, desire, and beauty. And Kāmadeva came, but he doesn’t know how to use the power. In this world also, the main problem is misusing power. And Brahmā told Kāmadeva, "You have the power, but before going to the world, before going to the universe, before going down to the earth, you need to be careful how to use your power, and better not misuse your power. So to know how to use the power, you have to meditate and meditate. Whose meditation? Śiva’s meditation." And he told, like before, without meditation you will not have the power. So he ordered Kāmadeva also to meditate. And without, if you have a weapon or a machine gun and you know how to use it, but if you don’t know the rules, what will happen? You will shoot everywhere, or whoever comes as an enemy in front of you, you can shoot. There are no rules, nothing. It’s like a mat sanaya. Mat sanaya is a fish, so the fish says, like, whoever is weak, then they can eat. That’s their rule. The weak fish is eaten by the powerful fish. That’s why, mat sanaya. So that’s why power misusing is the main issue of this world: how to use the power. And that is the thing when you read that here, and many gods and goddesses, Śiva and Nārada and Rāma and Viṣṇu, they have this amazing power. They have got the brahmāstra, divine weapons, but they didn’t use them just for the sake of using them or just to defeat the enemy. They always used them for the purpose of dharma, the protection of dharma. That’s why any power you have, you are only liable to use if you can protect the dharma, otherwise you’re not able to use that. Even though you are powerful, even though you are the most powerful person, don’t use your power just for the sake to show off your pride or for any selfishness. Work just for protection of the dharma, this is the main motto here. And Kāmadeva, also beautiful, amazing desire, anything, but just use for the protection of the dharma. If you misuse this, then you are liable to that punishment, or the consequences will not be fruitful, it will be bitter. Um, that’s the outcome. That’s why Kāmadeva is always careful before using. So, who is Kāmadeva? And he started to meditate, and Kāmadeva started meditation on Mahādeva. So, in this world, if you see the news every day in the daily newspaper, television, or radio, everywhere you can see the misuse of power. That’s why sometimes they are caught in cases of corruption, sexual abuse, or any illegal matter. And there are always issues you can see in this world, and always restless people have got power, but they don’t know how to use it. That’s why they will be in problems. If they can maintain the power, the world is beautiful and the beautiful world can give peace to everyone. This machine is not only made to kill mosquitoes. This machine is not made to kill all the pests and wild animals. This machine is made to kill humans, and by killing humans, they have been made to establish their own power. That is why this power is not misused. That is why, if that power is misused, then what happens is that people in the world will die in injustice. That is why the Śiva Purāṇa says that whatever power you have, it should not be misused. If you want to have power, then it should be for the protection of religion. If someone uses his power for the protection of religion, then there will never be a war in the world. Till now, you can see that all the battles in the world, in that battle, more than 5,000 times, there has been a war. And in this war, most of the people have died in the war of religion. People have died in the name of religion. But religion is not to snatch the powers of others, and the one who fights for the benefit of others is the one who has the right to rule. That’s why in today’s world, for peace, Śiva Purāṇa is very important. It should be taught to every government in every state and in every country. Shiv Purāṇ is an important scripture. So Shiv Purāṇ is one of the best scriptures that says how to utilize your power. You can see nowadays, the people have a lot of fear. You know, there are a lot of missiles, machine guns, and bombs, and there are chemical bombs nowadays. You can see many countries are in competition, and the machine guns and missiles are created not to control pests, not for the animals, not for any other reason, only that they want to kill the human being and want to establish their power. And because of the power competition, power fight, and conflict, up to now, there has been history from the civilization of human life. There have been more than 5,000 wars that have happened, and most wars happened in the name of religion. And many people died in the name of religion, but there is no religion. Dharma means to protect other people, to give peace to other people. But in the name of philosophy, in the name of Jain, Muslim, Christian, Hindu, in the name of any other religion, they are fighting. Actually, dharma is said like dharma, that means if you give the peace, if you protect the dharma, dharma will automatically protect you. You should not protect anything. You don’t need any missiles or weapons to protect dharma. Dharma is still dharma. You don’t need to show to Sūrya, the sun. Now, oh, there is a sun. You don’t need to market for the sun. The sun is already bright there. We don’t need to show, "Oh, this is the sun. It is brighter." We don’t need to do that any advertisement. So, Śiva Purāṇa says that utilize your power only for dharma. So, the karma deva also, that without discipline, without any rules, if you have any power, that cannot be in control. That’s why we will use them, misuse the power, maybe he can be successful one time or a second time, but he can be caught the third time. It is saying that no matter what, you still do that. Maybe you can hide one time, two times, and the third time you will be caught. If you can hide, maybe it is saying that after 12 years, everything will be reversed. Everything will be reversing. That’s why never think that, "We have got money, I can do anything. I’ve got power, I can do anything." No, because time will be changed. Time will be changed. And then the situation will be changed. That’s why we never see. Just for example, you know, the bird is flying, and the bird always was and wants to eat the ants, the small insect, you know that. And when the bird died, the ants eat the bird. So it’s reverse, isn’t it? First, the bird wants to eat the ants, and later on, when the bird dies, it falls to the earth, onto the surface, and the ants go and eat it. So, time comes for everyone. Today, somebody may be the weak, if weak in the sense of power, but tomorrow, who knows? So that’s why it also says, or the scripture also says, that never give up, going continuously, continuously. So who knows that one day you can be the richest person, you can be spiritually enlightened person never knows. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to give up, and you don’t need to give up your journey. You give continuously, you will have that enlightenment opportunity that can come. It doesn’t necessarily mean you are rich, you are doing close to God and guru, and you are very close to any temples or any shrines or pilgrimages, it doesn’t matter. If your devotion is continued, you are putting efforts in it, that definitely you deserve to be enlightenment one day. That happens, that I would like to add one more story. That one day, Nārada came to have a look around the earth, and on earth there were many yogīs meditating. And the yogīs were meditating, and he went to three different places, just for the cross sake of the yogi’s meditation, and Nārada saw there is a yogī who was meditating, and he went there. And Nārada asked, "Oh yogī, you are meditating here?" "Yes, yes, sir, yes," says, "I’m meditating here. Can you have access with God?" Directly, you can directly ask the supreme master, "Can you tell me one thing? What is that? Can you tell me one thing, Nārada? When will I get the enlightenment?" And Nārada told, "Well, then," the God says, "that you will have enlightenment. How? Many that live in this tree, that many years you have to meditate, and you have the liberation; otherwise, you cannot liberate." And that man surprises, and he started to dance, "Oh my God, so I will have an enlightenment one day! So at least I have enlightenment, no matter that’s a thousand years, no matter that’s five hundred years, I’ll have one day enlightenment." He started to dance, and he was dancing there, and the Nāras went to another place, and there was another yogī, he was meditating. For a long time, the person who is meditating, meditating, who is dancing there, he just started one month before, but he was dancing, okay? One day, I’ll have enlightenment, yeah, yeah. So, and he went to the next place, and the yogī was meditating for many years, and Nārada said, "Oh Nārada, you all right? Do you have any good news for me?" He said, "What good news?" "Well, so I’m meditating here for thousands and thousands of years, and when will I have that enlightenment?" Nārada said, "Well, there you are, very close, maybe five years more." "Oh, five years? Silly Nārada, I’m meditating here for a long time. I’m supposed to be enlightened this next year, or soon, sometimes in next month soon." And he started to give the, that is calling to Nārada, well, you can say that’s the message of the God, and I cannot do anything. I’m just the messenger. And Nārada just skipped and then went to the another yogī’s place, and the other yogī also said that, "Oh, Nārada, you arrived. So can you tell me, do you have any good news?" And Nārada said, "Well, you will be enlightened. The God has said that you will be enlightened in 50 years." And he said, "Well, I was supposed to be enlightened in, um, around 20 years. How come it’s 50 years? The ṛṣis are enlightened earlier, Rāvaṇa got the blessings, Śiva darśan earlier, and Kumbhakarṇa got the earlier. How come I have the late?" And they complain, and finally the God appears, and they got the darśan first to the yogī who is dancing there, so he might. You have to meditate for thousands of years, but because of his patience and acceptance, he got the darśan immediately, instantly. So that’s why, if you expect something desperately and selflessly, with selfishness, you might not have any darśan. And if you just give up, okay, don’t worry. One day we’ll have. If I don’t have this life, that’s fine; it’s my karma. As long as I’m doing my duty, that’s fine. As long as I’m starting my journey, that’s fine. One time we’ll have, then maybe you will get closer, you said, like, "Oh, Guru, that I’m meditating from 20 years, I’m giving donation, I’m doing this, I’m chanting thousands, I’m chanting even in the plane, aeroplane, I don’t have time, I’m keep chanting your name." So look at this, I’ve got a lot of... Part 2: The Test of Patience and the Discipline of Desire A person faces problems at home, unemployment, and an empty bank account. They ask, "When will I see the Lord?" This recalls a story Nārada told. A yogī was meditating for many years. Nārada informed him the Lord said he must do penance for five more years. The yogī became angry, feeling this was unjust after his long efforts. Nārada left him. Nārada then visited another meditating yogī, who joyfully asked for news of God. Nārada told him to count the leaves on the tree under which he sat; after that many years, God would grant him darśan. Unlike the first yogī, this one laughed and danced with joy, happy that darśan was assured, whether in 50 or 1,000 years. God appeared immediately to the second yogī, granting him darśan and liberation. Spirituality is the same for all. Those who sit with great expectations and greed do not receive darśan soon. Whatever you get or do not get for the Lord is no problem. You must do your duty. If you persist, you will surely attain the Lord. Never give up your practice and meditation. Our Śāstra says Arjuna had the same question: "O Lord, I cannot do this, for my mind is restless. How can I stabilize it?" God’s answer was: "Keep practicing. One day you will definitely get results." You performed pūjā today because there is no money at home, the children are unhappy, there is no job, the husband abuses, there is fighting, the wife is not at peace. You ask what is happening by going to the Guru’s āśram. It is not that fruit comes in one day. Have patience. One day it will surely happen. To bring the Gaṅgā to earth, Bhagīratha performed penance for thousands of years. To flow in the river of knowledge, have some patience. If you do things quickly, you will die quickly. If you have patience, you will live long. From the Bhagavad Gītā to the Śiva Purāṇa, all scriptures teach us to be patient; you will surely get it. If you do it quickly, there is no place for it; you can get it anywhere. Our scriptures teach the same: be patient. Kāmadeva performed dharma and began to meditate. He asked Brahmā, "How to meditate on Śiva?" Brahmā and many sages taught him. Brahmā said, "O Kāmadeva, if you do not know how to meditate, sit in any place and just repeat the pañcākṣarī mantra, 'Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya,' attentively with full devotion, continuously. One day, Śiva will come." Why do we chant "Oṁ" before prayer, yoga, or worship? "Oṁ" is addressing God. When you receive a telephone call, you first say "Hello," even if you know the caller. Similarly, God is there, but without addressing Him, He will not come. "Oṁ" is your call: "Please come here, I am calling you." "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya" addresses Śiva. If you do not know how to address Him, how will He grace you? Therefore, "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya" is an address. Thus, Brahmā and Vasiṣṭha Ṛṣi taught Kāmadeva to meditate, starting with "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya." Close your eyes, sit on the ground, and put your full attention. As you chant, your mind may wander, but ultimately you will connect with the eternal power, Śiva. Brahmā taught Kāmadeva: "You can sit in a corner and trap another person. But, O Kāmadeva, do not misuse this power. If you do, you will die or become trapped. First, learn to meditate." Everyone in this world asks this. When sādhus, sants, yogīs, or great men sit down, if someone speaks of meditation, they say, "Mahārāj, I do not feel like meditating." When you sit to meditate, sometimes you remember your home, sometimes money, sometimes other things. Dhyāna is not in the right place. If the mind is not steady, how will you meditate? Brahmā teaches: "O Kāmadeva, meditate. Sit in a certain place and, after sitting, say 'Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya.'" By taking the name of God, you get no place or opportunity to take anything else into your mouth. When you keep saying "Oṁ Namaḥ," you get no chance to abuse. It is an invitation, a call to God. No one comes without a call, not even dogs. If you call someone at home with respect, they will come. Therefore, what do we teach first? We teach as Vasiṣṭha Ṛṣi and Brahmā taught Kāmadeva: "Kaise kāte hain, kahin bhi baiṭhlo bhāī, aur baiṭh ke kyā karo ki Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya bolke Śivyī ko istudī karo. Jai Bholiye Śiva Bhagavān kī, Jai Bholiye Nārada Muni kī, Brahmā Viṣṇu Maheśvara kī, Jai." Kāmadeva began, Śiva came, and blessed him. "Kāmadeva, I am happy. I will tell you that you can disguise yourself in visible form. What can you do if you are invisible? Perhaps go directly into an ATM or a bank. But I will give you the power to be invisible, without a body. You can move, travel, and reside in the heart of a beautiful woman. You can stay with any beauty in this world and easily attract any person. This is my blessing. But, Kāmadeva, those who misuse this power will have trouble. Always keep this in mind." Śiva blessed him, and Kāmadeva, overjoyed, saluted and placed his head at Śiva’s lotus feet, receiving the blessings. When we receive blessings from God and Guru, we do as Kāmadeva did. Through meditation with Śiva, Kāmadeva received this blessing: "From today, you will spread throughout the world without a body. Without a body, you will live in the beauty of the world, in the heart of a beautiful woman or a beautiful man. Anyone who looks at you will be attracted; no one will be as powerful as you. This is my blessing. But, Kāmadeva, do not misuse your own power." That is why there is a lack of power in this world. Without reason, a woman or a man becomes attracted. You can hide it for one day, for two days. After a while, the curtain closes, and then there is a fight. This was the same blessing for Kāmadeva. Hail Kāmadeva! What philosophy can we understand from this Śiva Purāṇa teaching? Desire, sexual power, is also a blessing from God. If we misuse it, there will be problems. That is why we worship. The liṅga is the creative symbol of creation; it is creativity. It says this balances our life. We have different stages of life: first brahmacarya, second gṛhastha, third vānaprastha, and fourth sannyāsa. We divide life into four stages to balance it. If you misuse or cross that balance, you will have trouble. Therefore, Kāmadeva, when you marry, you can attract only one woman if you are a gṛhastha. If you are a sādhu saint, you better defeat Kāmadeva. That is why you need to do yoga, perform tapas, and remain on a phalahār diet. A sādhu remains on phalahār—eating only fruits. If you eat a lot of junk food, alcohol, cigarettes, and other things, your chemical desire increases. No matter if you are wearing geru vastra, the mind is always there. Your body is here, and you will be attracted by Kāmadeva. That is why we see many sexual abuse news involving saints and Mahāpuruṣas. Therefore, there must always be discipline. Those who remain disciplined will be the Satcha, Satguru, Satpuru, Satsadhu. Otherwise, they are just Pakhaṇḍī—so-called sādhus, so-called saints, so-called brāhmaṇas, so-called paṇḍitas. If you cannot defeat or maintain the rules of this divine knowledge, this divine formula, then you are breaching it. That is a preacher’s practice nowadays. That is the challenging thing in devotional areas: people say one thing and do another. They preach one thing and practice another. There is no alignment, so stress creeps in. That is where problems are created in this world. The Śivapurāṇa says that yes, you will have desire, but you need to follow the rules. In our yoga, there is aṣṭāṅga yoga. What are the eight stages? Yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇā, dhyāna, samādhi. If you are a yogī, you must follow yama. Patañjali says you need eight steps for yoga. But there is another receipt, Gorakṣanāth. Gorakṣanāth says no, for a yogī, only six steps, because yama and niyama are for everyone. All living beings need to follow them. If you are a human being, you need to follow yama and niyama. For the yogī, start from āsana. If you do regular āsana, you can balance your desire, and then slowly progress: āsana, yama, niyama, āsana, dhāraṇā, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇā, dhyāna, samādhi. Then you can withdraw your sensational desire. What did Patañjali say? If you are a true yogī, you should follow eight rules: Yama, Niyama, Āsana, Prāṇāyāma, Pratyāhāra, Dhāraṇā, Dhyāna, Samādhi. He should be pure in food and drink. First, a yogī who is not free from intoxication is not called a saint, a sage, or a Mahātmā. When intoxicated, he is not free from it; he does not get attracted to it. If someone called a sage, a scholar, or a saint drinks alcohol or gets intoxicated by whatever he finds in the world, he is not a good sage. Therefore, Patañjali says first purify the body. After purifying the body, your mind becomes purified. Another yogī, Gaurakṣanāth, says Patañjali stated you must follow eight steps in yoga. But Gaurakṣanāth Yogī, Nikhileśvar, says Yama-Niyama is for all people. Any person in the world should follow Yama-Niyama. Eating pure food, living in a good house, waking up according to rules, and staying in āsana are rules for an ordinary person. It should be more difficult for a yogī. Therefore, after Yama and Niyama, the six steps are for the yogī. That is why there is the same problem in this world. Someone says one thing, someone else does another. It is very difficult to find a true man in this world. Therefore, do not get attracted to anything. All that glitters is not gold. All that sparkles is not a pearl. Do not just follow the light. If there is a light inside, then follow it. This is what Śrī Purāṇa says. He gives the same teaching to Kāmadeva. Every glitter is not gold. Every shining thing is not a star. Therefore, do not follow this. Do not see only the light; follow the source of the light. That is what Kāmadeva is also told. Now, Nārada asks Brahmā: "O Brahmā, my dear teacher, my God." Who is the father of Nārada? Brahmā. Good, you will get the prize later. So Nārada asks Brahmā: Did Kāmadeva marry? How did he marry? Who gave him a wife? Who is his father-in-law? Brahmā tells Nārada: "O Nārada, I will explain. It is a wonderful story, and I will tell you when Kāmadeva comes." Kāmadeva started going everywhere, and he is very dangerous. People feel, "This is not good. He is going everywhere, disturbing everywhere." Everyone who is meditating, Kāmadeva goes to them. Whoever is practicing celibacy, Kāmadeva goes and can break their discipline. That is the dangerous thing. Then Mahādeva and everyone decided Kāmadeva needs to marry so he will be settled in one place. They designed a plan and asked Dakṣa Prajāpati: "O Dakṣa Prajāpati, can you give one daughter to Kāmadeva so he will be settled?" Dakṣa Prajāpati agreed and created a most beautiful daughter named Rati. Dakṣa Prajāpati’s most beautiful daughter is Rati. He was ready to give his daughter to Kāmadeva. One day they organized, and Brahmā and everyone said, "Kāmadeva, you need to marry. You will marry Rati, one of the most beautiful, heavenly ladies. Princess Rati is beautiful from tip to toe, amazingly, not only externally but internally as well." One day, Dakṣa Prajāpati invited them. What happened? They did Saṅkalpa. Before the wedding, they need to do Saṅkalpa—the commitment, intention, Pāṇigrahaṇa. What will happen to Kāmadeva? With Lord Śiva’s blessings, Kāmadeva started going to different places in the world. All the yogīs, sages, and siddhas who were distracted from the work of Lord Śiva, from the life of a householder, and from the world would go to meditate, but Kāmadeva would put obstacles. No one could survive. Therefore, Dakṣa Prajāpati and Brahmā together said Kāmadeva must get married. If he marries, he will be fine in one place. So what did he do? Brahmā told Dakṣa Prajāpati: "Find a girl for him." Dakṣa Prajāpati created a daughter on his behalf named Rati, who was very beautiful. He arranged the marriage of Rati and Kāmadeva. Rati was the daughter of Dakṣa Prajāpati. For the marriage, the time came for the decision. He said: "Hey Rati, from today, you make Kāmadeva happy. Hey Kāmadeva, you also live with Rati. Both of you live together in this world. Your work is only for creation. Apart from creation, do not forget anywhere. Whenever a child is created, for any other work, for eternal life, Kāmadeva and Rati live together. Otherwise, you do not live together in every place everywhere." He told them this, and they got married. Here is the story: they took the saṅkalpa, the intention. But before taking the intention, they needed to toss the water. Before doing prayer, we also do saṅkalpa. In this way, Dakṣa Prajāpati performed the saṅkalpa for the wedding of Kāmadeva and Rati. "O Rati, from today you do not need to leave Kāmadeva. O Kāmadeva, from today you do not need to leave." To the Ṛṣis, they took the saṅkalpa. After taking the saṅkalpa, Rati and Kāmadeva started living together in the world. Kāmadeva, who used to go to all places—saints, men, sages, all meditation yogīs—making fun of everyone, now had a bondage, an administration. He started living with Rati. He married the daughter of Dakṣa Prajāpati. What did Dakṣa Prajāpati do to get water? Dakṣa Prajāpati gave his Rati to Kāmadeva, and both started becoming happy. Rati said, "O father, you have given me a good birth, so I am very happy." After the wedding, Dakṣa Prajāpati asked his daughter, "Are you happy?" She said, "I am so happy, very happy now." Lord Prajāpati was satisfied, for whenever you have a daughter or kids, you always want to satisfy them. Similarly, Dakṣa Prajāpati asked Rati, "Rati, are you happy?" "Yes, I am happy." Brahmā also asked Kāmadeva, "Are you happy?" "I am very happy with Rati." Then they received blessings from their respected parents, bowing their heads. Brahmā and Prajāpati said, "You better remain yourselves. When the time comes for creations, when the time comes to produce the generation, only then can you be together, not all the time." That was the blessing from Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Dakṣa Prajāpati. According to this philosophy, what can we learn? What the Vedas and ancient philosophy teach is that you need to be disciplined. If you are a gṛhastha, you need discipline. If you are a sādhu, you need discipline. You should follow rules and regulations. If you do not, there will be complications. How do we match this theory to modern theory? If you read Sigmund Freud’s theory, it says people consume and consume. Why are people unhappy? Because they cannot fulfill their desire. If they can fulfill their desire, they can be happy. Therefore, consume to fulfill your desire. Look at this: because of that theory, that principle, nowadays there is a lot of sickness, disease, and freedom. In the name of freedom of sex and love, there are so many sicknesses, diseases, and difficulties. People are in a crowd but isolated. There is no trust between husband and wife because they always have doubt. In the name of freedom, they cross lines and borders. That principle has failed; it is no more popular. If you go to Marxism theory, Marxism also said that if you give equal distribution of infrastructure and assets, then society will be at peace. If infrastructure, assets, and property are distributed to everyone equally, and there is no income inequality, then society will be happy. This has been practiced in China and many communities and countries, but still there is war, unhappiness, and suicide. Why? Because they distribute property. The principle says distribute property, but not peace, not satisfaction, not discipline. Therefore, spiritual philosophy says distribute everything equally with rules and regulation, and spirituality should be there. Nowadays, there is an āśram in Nepal that has the images of Marx, Sigmund Freud, Śiva, Vivekānanda, and all ladies. They pray to them because whoever contributed to human society, whoever created principles for human society, all are respected. But we always need to make a balance. If you go to Nepal, there is one āśram where they pray to Marx, Vivekānanda, Śiva, and so on, and spiritual philosophy. Now, if you see communism, Sigmund Freud’s principle, and also capitalism: in capitalism, what happens? You can consume and consume whatever you see. You need to enjoy material life. If you see an expensive mobile, you deserve to buy it. If you see an expensive car, building, house, any material thing, you need to buy it. You can enjoy this. Yes, you can enjoy, but what happens if you buy a BMW, a Mercedes, a Ferrari? You need to work more. When you need to work more, you need to pay more, and when you need to pay more, you have no time for God and Guru. You have no time to think about life, worth, death, and eternal peace. You always become a slave of material things. According to capitalism also, there is no happiness. I am living in Australia. Somebody coming from Canada, Portugal, Hungary says, "You can see life is very busy there. Just wake up early in the morning, pack up the tiffin box, and run for work. The work ends, you come back, and just sit in front of the TV. Sometimes you do not have time to watch TV, and the TV watches you. People do not have time to talk with people; they talk with the refrigerator and the kitchen. They talk with some other boxes because they have no one to share with." That is why there is a lot of stress there. Capitalism gives us things to buy; it gives us hunger but not peace. It gives us houses, modern things. We have a swimming pool, a beautiful two-storied house, a car, all material things and infrastructure, but we have no time to enjoy them because we have to work in the name of richness. We become slaves of material things, so capitalism also does not give pleasure. Therefore, Vedānta Siddhānta tells us we need to follow the principle of spirituality. If you follow these rules, no matter if you do not have a single penny, you are happy. You can see that one day. Part 3: The Richest Man and the Sleeping Beggar: A Lesson in Śānti I accompanied her to Osaka, Japan, where I met one of the wealthiest individuals, a man who owns 120 restaurants. He was walking with me because he wished to design his resort according to Vāstu principles. He had invited me from Australia for this purpose. The resort, located near Nagasaki, contains a hot spring and a beautiful nature reserve, adorned with world-class art. As we walked through the streets of Osaka, we saw a man sleeping on the pavement. The wealthy restaurateur remarked, "Oh, Paṇḍit, do you see that? I am very jealous of that man." I asked him, "Why are you jealous? You are an immensely rich person with all these beautiful properties. How can you be jealous of a street dweller?" He replied, "Look at him. He can sleep so peacefully there. I have lost my sleep. For many days now, I cannot sleep, so I am jealous of him. Even on the street, he sleeps easily and dreams. What an enviable state." He highlighted the difference: "Capitalism gives peace to this man." He then confessed about his own empire: "I have 120 restaurants; I don't even know all their names. I don't know my exact income either; I have to ask my accountant." So, the question is: can anyone become happy merely from wealth? No, one does not become happy from wealth alone. One needs peace (śānti). Without peace, no one in this world is content. Various theories and principles have arisen—like those of Sigmund Freud, consumerism, and communism—all stating that there is no lasting satisfaction in material things. Even if you buy a TV, a car, or anything else, consumerism will not grant you ultimate happiness. True happiness occurs when you possess nothing. When you have no money, you can sleep anywhere. At that time, you are happy. You can buy a bed worth lakhs of rupees, but if there is no sleep in that bed, what is its use? Therefore, our Purāṇas and Vedic scriptures instruct us to be regular in everything. Become a yogastha. By practicing yoga, you will find happiness. You will not find lasting happiness with the material things of this world. Thus, the Śiva Purāṇa also advises us. Consider the method of Rati and Kāmadeva. They offer counsel for worldly life. For example, if you go to a party, you may enjoy the drinks, but tomorrow that enjoyment vanishes. You will have a hangover, bad breath, perhaps even vomit as if from food poisoning. So where is the enjoyment? You enjoyed it for two hours, but later it is gone. You may even lose money and feel foolish. That is why, when you come into this world, if you remain close to the Lord, you will always be happy. Our Vedic philosophy teaches that whatever philosophies enter this world—communism, capitalism, Marxism, Buddhism—when they arrive, no one is left unbroken. What is the essence? When you become devoted to the Lord, all happiness becomes yours. In the Western world, what do we experience? We feel a hunger to buy now. Whatever you see, you buy. There is constant competition. You must show off. And by showing off, you must work even more. If you work more, there is less time for the devotion of God. Time becomes scarce. Then what happens? No time is left for the Lord. That is why the time of death arrives. It is said: as long as there is life, there will be no time for work. Therefore, set aside one evening, one moment, to love Lord Rāma. Now we have some music. We chant Śiva, Śiva bhajan. Without appeasing Śiva, we cannot proceed. So wherever you are, just keep in your mind Śiva, Śiva of transcendental energy. It will be directed towards peace, and the importance of this mantra of Lord Śiva cannot be fully explained. Jai! The Story of Sandhyā from the Śiva Purāṇa We now enter the 10th chapter of the Rudra Saṁhitā in the Śiva Purāṇa. This chapter explains Sandhyā. Brahmājī created a most beautiful woman named Sandhyā. Sandhyā means dawn, the junction of day and night, the most beautiful time. We will discuss why Brahmā created her, her role, and the mystery of beauty and attraction. This is a wonderful narrative. We know Kāmadeva finally settled with Rati, but how many of you know that Kāma Deva is still not settled for many people? He will be settled only with the blessing of Śiva. In the last chapter of the Rudra Saṁhitā, we heard about Kāmadeva and Rati's marriage. Now, what does Brahmājī do? He creates a beautiful woman named Sandhyā. What is a beautiful woman? How must she live in the world? What is her role in society? What is her secret? This Purāṇa addresses these questions. In today's society, we face many problems and seldom hear good news. Hence, it is discussed here how a woman is considered as Lakṣmī and how she is to be worshipped. In the Rudra Saṁhitā of the Śiva Purāṇa, chapters 7 to 10 discuss Sandhyā. Once, Brahmājī felt the desire to create a beautiful woman. His son Nārada asked him, "Father, why did you create such a beautiful woman named Sandhyā? How did she get married? Please tell us the details." Brahmājī replied, "Nārada, for the sake of beauty and a beautiful woman..." He explained, "I felt that something was lacking in this world. People are always upset, sad, and confused. They do not know the role of a woman, nor her rights and rules, or how to respect her. Therefore, I created Sandhyā as an example." One day, Brahmā created this lady. The moment she emerged, she addressed him: "Brahmājī, thank you for giving me this beautiful birth and the name Sandhyā. Sandhyā is a border—neither night nor day. Thank you for this. But I do not wish to marry. I do not want to be attracted to any person or husband, nor do I want to be known as an object of attraction." Brahmā asked, "Why do you say this?" Sandhyā replied, "I just want to worship and meditate. I do not wish to marry. There is much trouble and misery in family life. Brahmā, I know I am most beautiful. Once people look at me, they cannot resist their temptation. I know this, yet I do not wish to marry." Sandhyā continued, "Father, you gave birth to me and a beautiful name, but I do not want to marry anyone. I do not want any man in the world to look at me with a bad eye. O Brahmājī, you know I am so beautiful that people fall in love upon seeing me. What should I do? Please tell me the solution." Brahmājī said, "O beautiful woman, since you are born and do not wish to marry, and you wish to understand your beauty, how to live as a woman, and what to give to the world, then you must meditate." He instructed her to meditate on Śivjī, for Śiva is compassionate and grants blessings quickly. "Meditate on Śivjī. His lovely mantra is Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya. Chant Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya." Brahmājī taught Sandhyā to meditate. "How to meditate? Remember the Pañcākṣarī Mantra. While meditating, when you see Lord Śiva, ask him about your duty. What must a woman do and not do in life? Lord Śiva will tell you in darśana. It is your duty to become steadfast in meditation (dhyānastha). Dear Sandhyā, do this." Upon receiving this knowledge, Sandhyā went to meditate. Now, wherever you are listening to this story—via webcast, television, on the road, or here in the pandal—keep listening. For the knowledge of God (Dev Vidyā) is for all; it is one language for all nations, whether you are white, Chinese, Indian, Nepali, or Bengali. God grants knowledge to all. That is why I speak in two languages. When I lapse into Hindi, I explain for those who understand English, and vice versa. Remember, Sikh Bhagavān is not a language; God resides in the mind. God has the right to give knowledge to everyone. Now, I explain about Sandhyā. Sandhyā is the most beautiful princess, a heavenly beauty. She asked Brahmā, "What is my duty?" Brahmā told her that if she wished to understand her beauty and her life's duty, she must meditate—and to meditate on Śiva. He instructed her to begin with "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya." Longing for guidance, she went to meditate on a river bank. Why a river bank? It is the holiest place, where one can feel various energies that have persisted for thousands of years. Through meditation, you can connect with that energy and influence your subconscious mind. Scientifically, when you meditate, your mind flows into the atmosphere, finer than ether. It travels like electricity, but faster. By meditating, you connect with the divine energy of the river bank, which holds spiritual purity and eternal knowledge. That is why ṛṣis, munis, and yogīs go to jungles, river banks, or ocean beaches to meditate. It is easier to reach a higher state and gain meditative power there. Thus, Sandhyā went to meditate at the river bank. She meditated and meditated until one day Śiva appeared. In our scriptures, there is no case where sincere meditation does not yield a vision. If you try with effort, success is assured. If you doubt, remember Thomas Edison. He invented the electric bulb after failing 9,999 times, but he never gave up. Finally, he succeeded, and now we enjoy electric light. When a journalist asked him, "You failed 9,999 times and succeeded only once. How can you claim to be a successful scientist and discoverer?" Edison replied, "I was discovering all the processes that do not work. Now people can easily learn what does not work for electricity. What works is my finding." Therefore, it is hard to put in effort, but one must continue persistently in practical life and in sādhanā—for meditation, liberation, and everything. Keep trying. One day, you will definitely attain Śiva, the state of transcendence, the state of liberation. In our lives, we often panic. We start yoga or meditation for a few days or months and expect instant results. When we do not get them immediately, we become upset and start blaming God, Guru, the process, dharma, or religion, even considering conversion. But have you truly tried? Sometimes we say, "Somebody is not meditating," but we ourselves are that "somebody." If you know this, you cannot give up. Keep doing it, and you will succeed in any field. If you are not succeeding, if you are failing in life, remember Thomas Edison tried 9,999 times. The world asked him, "You failed 10,000 times, yet you discovered electricity. What is the value in that?" His answer was, "Brother, I identified so many things that do not work in the world. But finally, I found what works." You should also remember this for your spiritual practice (prāṇa). In our meditation and sādhanā, have we given up? After two to four days, months, or years, have we grown weary of faith and devotion for Bhagavān? No, never tire. Not for one or two days, but for the rest of your life, you will definitely attain the darśana of Lord Śiva. The darśana of Lord Śiva means the knowledge and realization of truth. In reality, in due time, Lord Śiva may appear before you visibly—that is a different matter. But in your mind, you will certainly realize the truth. That is the principle of "tat tvam asi" (thou art that) and "attadīpo bhava" (be a light unto yourself). This is the teaching of our Śāstra. After all the śāstras, you must keep practicing. Sandhyā, the daughter of Brahmā, also began meditating. What happened one day? Śivjī came. In our śāstra, no one who performs sincere penance is left without a vision. So, Sandhyā attained the darśana of Śivjī. After the darśana, Śivjī said, "Sandhyā, you are beautiful, the most beautiful. You can make anyone fall in love with you. But tell me, what do you desire? You are already beautiful." She replied, "Bhagavān, this beauty has become my enemy. Why are flowers plucked? Because of their beauty. People do not pick up stones or thorns for their beauty. Therefore, God, my beauty is my enemy. I wish to become without a body (videha). Bless me so that no one in this world sees me. If seen, only my husband should see me, and no one else. If I must marry, I will, but I do not want to be seen by men. If they see me, they become impure." She asked for this. What is the lesson for present-day women? Beauty is inherent, but beauty is not meant to be displayed to the world. It is meant to be seen by God. That is what Sandhyā desired. Today, women walk barefoot on the streets in the name of beauty... they walk barefoot on the streets for the sake of beauty. If someone else sees the Lord's creation with lust, he becomes impure—meaning no one should touch her with impurity. There is a divine principle: we should follow Gṛhastha dharma. A husband should be a devotee, a wife should be a devotee. Get married, there is no problem. If you cannot remain in Brahmacarya, Āśrama, or Sannyāsa, then get married. But do not abandon dharma. Do not engage in illicit relationships (rāsa-līlā) with anyone. Do not be swayed by looking at others, even if they are priests, saints, or great men. That is a great sin. It is rare to be born a human after 400,000 years. What is the external show? They perform dharma, they are saints, sants, paṇḍits, jñānīs. But when the inner time comes, if you cannot conquer desire (Rati) and have an affair or gaze lustfully at a girl, it is a sin. If you cannot control yourself and wish to marry, then marry. Marriage is for a woman to be a wife and for a man to be a husband. What is the duty of a householder? If you marry, be a devoted husband and wife. If you remain disciplined, your spiritual practice will not be unbalanced. You will always fare well in this world. Therefore, beauty is the beauty of the mind. There is beauty in the world, but there is no beauty in mere knowledge. In the name of beauty, what are we doing? The real beauty written about in our traditions is that which is found in devotion. It is not the beauty celebrated by society, where the one who can be more naked or more arrogant is praised. How divided our societies have become! But our Dharma, Śāstras, Vedas, and Vedāṅgas state that true beauty is to be helpful, to be devoted. Do not cut off your own connection with God. So, Sandhyā meditated, chanting "Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya." Finally, what happened? She attained a vision, and Śiva stood before her. Śiva asked, "O beautiful princess, you are already endowed with supreme beauty. You are a wonderfully beautiful girl. What do you desire now? People ask for beauty and attraction. You are already blessed, already gifted by God. Why are you meditating? What is the purpose of your meditation? Please let me know. I am ready to grant any boon you ask right now." When Mahādeva said this, Sandhyā replied, "O Mahādeva, thank you for this audience. But you know this beauty is my enemy. It is something I wish to avoid. Why do people pick flowers? Because of their beauty. Beautiful things are always picked—that is their problem, their suffering. Beauty is not always a pleasure; it is also a source of suffering. O Mahādeva, I do not need this beauty anymore. I wish to show myself only to God. I do not want to display this beauty to the world. To whom should beauty be shown? To God, not to the world. O God, if I must marry, I will, but I have one condition. I ask for your blessing: this beauty should be visible only to my husband, not to other people. If my husband sees it, that is fine. If others see it, I will curse them, and they will cease to be virtuous (satpuruṣa)." Mahādeva asked, "Why do you want this?" She answered, "Because I do not wish to be a common person, a marketed commodity. I want beauty only for God and for my husband." What a beautiful story this is, offering a moral lesson for today's society, where there is conflict between husband and wife, and women compete, showing off and vying to become like naked figures on the street. A comedian from Nepal came to Australia and told me, "Gurujī, I discovered something. Do you know why Australia is such a rich country? Because they consume the least clothing and save money. When I go to the ocean beach, they wear only a one-piece or two-piece swimsuit, so they don't need to buy many clothes. That's why they became rich." Similarly, nowadays, in the name of beauty, if you have nothing substantial, you start displaying your body. If you have something within, you do not need to show off. You do not need to compete. Thus, Sandhyā asked Śiva, "O Śiva, please." Śiva said, "If you walk on the street, anyone can see you and stare, unable to resist temptation. What happens then?" Sandhyā then requested, "Śiva, please make me invisible. I do not want this body. I wish to remain in the air in an invisible form." Śiva replied, "If you wish to do that, you must enter the holy fire (agnikuṇḍa). You can jump into it, and in your next life, you can begin anew as an individual." She wondered, "Where can I go?" Śiva said, "You can go... sister, this is again a reception, where holy ceremonies are always performed. You already have this physical body; you cannot change it now. If you go and jump into the fire, it means your senses will not die again." This reminds me of the Bhagavad Gītā, Chapter 2: the soul is never destroyed. Your consciousness will not be destroyed. It will remain here without your body, in invisible form. So do not worry, Sandhyā. If you wish for this, go and jump into the holy fire. In your next life, you will be invisible. But you need to marry, and to whom? You must always marry Śiva. This inspires marriage. Why is this in the Śiva Purāṇa? Because Śiva is already married. Whatever you have, you will give the same. Śiva inspired marriage because without marriage, one is not complete. Marriage signifies the combination, the unification of prakṛti and puruṣa, nature's dualities, negative and positive, the southern and northern hemispheres. Without that connection, something is lacking. That is why Śiva himself agreed to marry Satī, and Viṣṇu married Lakṣmī. Kṛṣṇa also married. Everywhere, divine grace (jīvana) is precious. Part 4: The Path of Sandhyā: Detachment and True Beauty Life, you can easily gain detachment. That is why, who is Sandhyā? What does she do? She tells Mahādev, "Mahādevjī, I do not want to marry, because what is mine? Sundar. Chāyā merā śatru hai, main kyā karo?" In response to her words, Śiva Jī says, "Hey Sandhyā, don’t talk about not getting married. You should get married. If you want to be invisible, then do it." Then Sandhyā asks, "How can I become invisible, Lord?" So Śiva Jī tells her that wherever you are performing the Yajña, go there and make your life wonderful. Make it exciting. After that, if you get another life, then at that time you will become Videhā. If you become Videhā, then you will be visible only to your husband. The rest will be left unnoticed. That is why she took the blessings of Lord Śiva. And what did she do? She did everything for the sake of women's education. Only for the sake of her husband. Only for the sake of God, not to show the world. I just said a joke in English. I want to tell you a story. Someone came to Australia from Nepal. He asked why Australia is rich. And he told me he found out the secret of Australia being rich. I asked him why. He said, "Mahārāj, when I go to the seaside, people don’t wear clothes there. That’s why the cost of clothes is saved, and Australia becomes rich. That’s why I came to know that Australia is rich." So that is the thing I want to tell. I want to know what the Śiva Purāṇa says: in the name of beauty, the beauty that is being shown, does a society get disturbed? If we want to see, then we have to see it with the Lord. So what did Sandhyā do? After that, she went to a ṛṣi-muni’s āśram. And there the whole ājñāvan was going on. So what did she do? She performed utsarga in each kuṇḍa. When she was born again, she became invisible. When she became invisible, then because of the blessings of Brahmā and Śiva Jī, what did she do? She got married to Vasiṣṭha Ṛṣi. And when she got married to Vasiṣṭha Ṛṣi, she became independent. This changes the structure of the Śrī Purāṇa. There is a lot of knowledge for the human community. But this knowledge is like nectar. When someone follows it, then there will be knowledge. So the knowledge is that by reading, listening, and giving, that knowledge does not happen. So sunī sunā gyān nahī̃ hai, ke āṅkho dekhyā gyān hai, kāno dekhyā gyān nahī̃ hai. Kabīr Mahārāj bhī bolte rate hai. Isi liye kyā hai, ke duniya mein jñāna denā sajil hai, āsān hai, lekin jñāna pālan karnā mushkil hai. Now I’d like to say here, when Sandhyā was meditating and received bliss from Śivajī, she went to the Ṛṣimuni’s āśram and gave up her body. So she gave up her body. That means what is the significance? It means give up the attachment to your body, give up the attachment to your material body that is going to die one day. In symmetry, why are you loving that much, giving it priority? Yes, you need to give priority to your devotion. This is the tool to attain dharma, not to attain the boy, husband, and the people, not to attract people. This is for this body. It is a tool to attract the purity of mind. That is why Sandhyā is telling us that beautiful things don’t miss this body. This body you have got amazing things here in the science, in the evolution science that tells that in modern... Science tells us what types of bodies and jīvas there are in this world. There are a variety of types of jīvas. So the first is the tree. The tree has got only one sense. A tree cannot move. A tree cannot go anywhere. It has got just some other qualities, but not movement. That’s why it says, like, a tree. And second is two senses. What are the two senses? Those jīvas, the life that can move here and there, that is the life in your body. And some insects, they can move here and there, but they don’t know liberation. They don’t know how to love. They don’t know how to save fruits and food. So that’s two senses. And three is under the, under the means that comes from the egg. Whoever comes, chicken, birds, any, the feces, they are from the eggs, so. They are three senses, and four senses are the animals. That’s that. As the mammals, those are the four legs. They have got four senses. The love, they have got kids. They can look after. You can see how animals love their kids until they grow up. They really protect the four senses. The five senses is the human being, that you know, the love, creation, protection, and, you know, liberation as well. But the other four senses, animals, they don’t know how to liberate; they can’t connect with the universe, gods, and guru. But those three can’t connect. The fourth, fifth is connected, and when you elevate, your sense level is increased. That’s why Kṛṣṇa, who has come in this universe, Rāma, the Lord Rāma, they have got how? Many senses, how many? That’s a color, sixty. Yeah, the more you meditate, the more you have knowledge, you have got more color. Otherwise, if you have, if you are living like an animal, you have got only four colors. You are living just eating, sleep, sex, protect, die. That’s it. It is so. That’s animal life. That’s what the Śiva Purāṇa also tells: elevate your sense. You’re not living here just for the eating and just fulfilling sensual desire in this world. That’s not what we’re living for. Purpose, that’s why. Purposeful life. Live your life purposefully. That’s the reason, and that’s on there. What a contribution that she wants to give up her beautiful body. We want to buy the beautifulness here, isn’t it? Somebody, you can go in Europe and America, in Australia. They want to increase their organs. They want to buy. They want to cut the muscles from the thigh, and want to put this or some other place, look at this for beauty. But here, in Sandhyā, they want to give up the whole body, the beautiful body they don’t want anymore. And there is a lot of plastic surgery. You are becoming 60, you want to be young, and they paid thousands, hundreds of dollars and change your facial structure just for the beauty, fake beautiness. But the Śivapurāṇa says, "Don’t attach with the bodily beauty, attract with the heavenly beauty," so eternal. Meaning, if you just listen, this story is like a normal story anyone can tell. Śivapurāṇa knows everyone, even a layman, a simple pundit, everyone knows. But the interpretation and the understanding is different. How can we understand? It says that each and every story has a great meaning in it, so we need to know eternally, we need to know the significance of the meaning, not simply, merely the story. That story keeps the story, that’s a bad story, so that’s why. Knowing the story is not the knowledge. Knowing Purāṇa Grantha is not the knowledge. Telling śabda jñāna is not the knowledge. Change, spiritual transformation, is the knowledge and is the wisdom. So here, Sandhyā also got the blessing, and she... When she sacrificed herself in a holy fire, she found a new life, and she’s traveling as a beauty around. And now she’s an invisible beauty. That is the example of our nārī society, mahilā society, mahilā samāj. Jāp nārī ne kyā kyā? Sandhyā ne kī āpne jīvan utsarg kardiyā agni mein, agni mein utsarg kardiyā, aur jīvan ko samāptī kardiyā. Śiva Purāṇa batātā hai kī iskā arth kyā hai? Ham kaise samajh lenā chāhiye? Kathā to koī bhī boltā hai. Śiva Purāṇa sabko mālūm hai. Kathā bolne se paṇḍit koī nahī̃ ho jāyegā. Sādhu, sādhu, mahātmā, koī nahī̃ ho saktā hai, kathā se śabda jñāna ho jātā hai, tab to jñāna honā chāhiye. Śiva Purāṇa sirf simple story nahī̃ hai. This is not a story, this is not a story. What is the meaning of Saṁdhyāvana in the evening fire? What is its scientific reason? That you do not fall in love with the body. Once the body comes, it is finished. But if you want to show, then show the Lord. These days, you see that for the beauty of the body, what do you not do in the world? By spending thousands and lakhs of dollars, they increase the number of parts of the body. And by doing plastic surgery, they make the face good. But what happens is that you don’t get the beauty inside. That is why there is a fight, tension, quarrel, and worry. And in society, there is discord. There is a fight between husband and wife. There is a fight, the relationship is divided, and everything is increasing. But what happens is that for the sake of beauty, you then increase the beauty of your mind. Brother, the beauty outside is not beauty. That beauty is your enemy. And if you do malice to the enemy, what will happen? You will be defeated. Do not do malice to the enemy. Do the body, do yoga, do dhyāna, do tapas, do śuddha, do śānti. And keep the body pure. But the body is not complete. Śarīram ādyaṁ khalu dharmasādhanam. What is the body? It is a means of doing dharma. That is why you should follow this body’s dharma. This is the body of the five elements. The body of the five elements is the destroyer. Once this body is destroyed, that is why you should arrange for the things which are never going to be destroyed. You should make it beautiful. You are putting water in the roots and branches of the roots. And you are forgetting to put water in the roots. That is why we pay attention to God. Attachment to God is the greatest beauty, and that is why you go to the world. To buy intelligence in the market, there is no shop. If you go somewhere, you will find a place to buy cream, powder, and cosmetics. But have you ever seen a shop where you can buy intelligence? Otherwise, I also used to buy it in two to four kilograms. No one can buy it. So, intelligence is obtained by being close to God and by the grace of God, by the grace of the Guru. That’s why you should always look in that direction. Never take rest in your journey. As long as you bring this human life, that’s why I have already told you that in life, what is a human being? A human being can reach the source art. What is in one art is like a tree. If there are two arts, it is like a worm, like an insect. And if there are three arts, animals, it is like a bird. And if there are four arts, it is a cow, a buffalo, a bull. They can’t think, they can’t get close to God, they can’t listen to the word Mukti, they just want to eat, drink, have fun, and die. That’s life. That’s why they say they play with these four things, animals. If your life doesn’t get bigger than this, then what difference does your life have with animals? That’s why they say, "Na bhojane na nidrāyāṁ na bhaye na ca mohane." Wake up above that. Just like there are animals in all four arts, there are humans in all five arts. And to become a God beyond humans, Lord Rāma came, Lord Kṛṣṇa came. And great men came into the world. They reached the Śor and Kalā. That’s why there was spiritual power in them. What do humans do today? They show off. They talk big. There is no knowledge inside. There is no power, but there is no purity in small things. There is no purity. And now I am going to the second section. What does Sandhyā mean? It is the middle part of day and night. That is Sandhyā. What is Sandhyā Kāla? It is mentioned here in Śiprād that if someone lives with his wife, he will remain impure. What is Sandhyā Kāla for? Dharma parjan ke liye, dharma sādhanā ke liye hai, sabse pehle brahma mūrtā mein jāgo, dharma ke kām karo, yog dhyān, nyās dhyān karo, din mein āp jo bhī karo, phir sām mein kyā karo, nyās dhyān satsaṅg karo, isī liye sandhyā bandhan banāyā gayā hai, abhī sandhyā bandhan pustak mein rahā gayā hai, aur show call paṇḍit, sādhu aur jo bhī hai, kī vo log sandhyā bandhan to ke, to unke liye ek time bhī nahī̃ raṭā hai kī bhagavān ke dhyān karne ke liye, bade bade bād ho jāte haiṁ. That is why there are 2-4 Sadguru’s in the world, 2-4 human beings who follow this in reality. That is why it is difficult to get the truth. The rule of evening bandhan is kept in our Sanātana Dharma because in our life, the work of the human brain is only six hours. That is why our Vedic science says that you should do evening bandhan every 6 hours. Wherever you are, you are at work, you are in a job, wherever you are, take out some time and meditate. Otherwise, for the sake of God, you get together and meditate. That is Sandhyā Bandhan. But you don’t have the time. You are saying that the time has passed. You talk a lot, and the blessings of Mahāpuruṣ are great. And the blessings of Pandit. But what is it? Kī pothī badī badī, jagmoha paṇḍit bhaya na koī, dhai ākhar kā prema paḍe, soī paṇḍit hoī. Jo Kabīrjī ne pahle bolā hai, abhī bhī vohī cīz kyā hai? Kyā hai? Isī lie humko practical life meṁ jānā hai, sansār ke lie. Abhī kathā sab jānte haiṁ, purāṇ sab jānte haiṁ, lekin kyā hai kī śabda gyān nahī̃. Tattva jñāna kā jarūrī hai abhyāsa hai. Abhyāsa hai, na tu kaunteya bairāge na chukriyate. Abhyāsa karo. Abhyāsa karne se hī mukti milegā, bāt karne se nahī̃. Bāt karo, suno. But what is there? Remove ego from it. What did Buddha do in Buddha’s time? To make someone a disciple, he first sent him to become a bhikkhu. So Buddha said to someone, "Make me a disciple." Buddha said to the disciple, "If you want to become a disciple, go to your enemy’s house and become a Bhikkhu." He said, "No, no, don’t send me to the enemy’s house because he is proud of his ego." So he couldn’t go because of his ego. So Buddha said that you are not worthy to be my disciple. So what does it mean to ask? That you have to lower your ego. If you can’t do that, then you can’t win over your ego. Then you won’t be able to become a disciple of any Guru. That’s why making a habit of bowing before the Guru is the religion of a disciple. Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī, Jai Bhole Śrī Avarama Candra Kī Jai, Bhole Śrī Avarama Chandra Kī keith. So we have got a beautiful story here, but still, we have to say so many things. It’s amazing and nectar for this universe, for this society. Just, I’d like to add 10 more minutes about this Sandhyā. We will have a break for lunch. It says, you know, what is the Sandhyā? With Sandhyā, Sandhyā is the border between day and night, midday, and the time of the day. The border in Sandhyā times, sandhyā, is not for the fulfillment of your sexual desire, is not for attaining material desires. Sandhyā is the devotional time; that is why, in the morning and evening, we need to meditate. So, what should you do in the morning and evening? You need to perform your devotion. This time is for the devotion, not for sleep, not for sex, not for desire, not for love, not for the material gain and material affair. This time, the God has determined these three Sandhyās. Three Sandhyās means three times on that morning, six o’clock. Afternoon twelve o’clock and evening six o’clock, that is for Sandhyā abundant. That’s why it is saying that in our scripture, three times a day you need to meditate. If you don’t know how to meditate, sit for a while, and if you don’t have time for the meditation, then you are not the human being or devotee or devotional person. That’s you are spending time, it’s like animals. After the long, long journey of these spaces, you’ve got this beautiful human body, but you are not, if you are not utilizing this for the meditation, for knowing attachment and connection with God and Guru, then after, life is going towards death. So, what is the evening bandhan? It is the time to do penance in the evening. In the morning at 6 o’clock, at 12 o’clock, in the evening at 6 o’clock, do penance. Without penance, what happens? No meditation comes. Without knowledge, no meditation comes. So, that is meditation. What is the scientific reason for this? What is the scientific reason behind this? The first thing is, we are human beings, and we need energy. And for the energy, every six hours, we finish that mental energy. Energy, so every six hours we finish that energy to think that eternally divine thinking. That you feel lazy and clumsy and slow, that’s why your brain needs to activate, re-energize, revitalize. So if you meditate one hour, that will provide you three hours rest, so that’s why if you make it a habit in your life, every six hours... You can see in some other religions as well, the Muslim brothers, what they do? They do the prayer, five times they do the prayer. Christians, they do the prayers, so... Dharma is the moralist story that inspires you to perform the devotion in the same way. In Sanātana Dharma, it says, "Sandhyā bandhan." If you don’t know, ask the guru, teacher, master, the spiritual person how to perform your Sandhyā bandhan. If you know, you can do it. If you don’t know, still you can maintain. And the first reason, the first scientific reason, is that our mind cannot work more than 6 hours to think good things. If you work for six hours, after six hours you get lazy, tired, and sleepy. That is why, every six hours, you have to take a bath, wash your face, and do penance. You have to follow the rules of Sandhyā Bandhan. But nowadays, Sandhyā Bandhan is kept in the paper, in the book. No one does it. And the great Mahāpuruṣ, Paṇḍit, and others talk about it. And that is why, if there is no behavior, then you should be aware of the behavior. That no one is greater than to sit on top of a mountain. That is why no one is greater than to talk big, no one is greater than to talk big with a big body. That the action that is done is greater for God. Neither is it done by caste, nor is it done by wealth, nor is it done by strength, nor is it done by position, nor is it done by action. So, no one will tell you that you should ask your mind, "How big are you, or not?" No. That is why you should never think of anyone as dust, because dust also lives under the shoes. When it falls in your eyes, you will have to cry. That is why you should never think of dust as weak. There is a person here, you can see him, he may be very poor, and he may not have any wealth, but he may be true to his faith. He may be greater than a true sage. That is why you should not consider any community as weak. The one who walks on the streets, the one who can’t misbehave with the poor, don’t call him bad. He can be the face of God. The one who talks big, the truth can be little with him. There can be a lot of sin hidden in him. It is not seen. But the sin is kept hidden, as the earth has taken the sun, but the world can be different. That is why you should respect equally and practice what you preach. If no one practices, then they are putting themselves in the trap of karma; they are putting themselves in hell. They are doing good deeds in the world, but in the abode of God, at the door of God, they will not do good deeds. What will you do by showing this world? Now the world worships you. That is why you should follow your karma and do your duty. So, what is the second reason? Due to ignorance, in the morning, the amount of oxygen is increasing. Or more than 60% oxygen is in our environment, so it’s easier to meditate in the morning than in the afternoon or any other time. That’s why nitrogen and carbon dioxide are increasing in the daytime, so morning time is the best time in Brahmamūrta, and the nectar is coming on the earth. That’s why one takes bath early in the morning. So take your bath, because in the water there are holy things, native nectars, especially in Kumbh Melā. If you take bath early in the morning at 5 o’clock, what will happen? The energy from Jupiter, from the sun, that is radiating, and you are healing, cleansing. So that’s why the main motto of Śiva Purāṇa, today’s chapter, is follow the practice, not the sub, the Gyān Kahānī, but Akiko, a book. The name of time, I can’t, it will be, but as a tie it. And someone was asking the blind man, "Lord, I want to cross the road." So no one was able to cross it. The other blind man said that I will cross it. He does not see. How does he know that I am blind? He went and said, "Yes, I will cross it." He went and held his hand. Sometimes he turns here, sometimes he turns there. Sometimes he turns here, sometimes he does not cross it, because even he does not have eyes. Those dunyā, maybe saṃsāra, put our neck in a box, in the neck in a me, but a very done with our a very pot. Pratishṭhā curry, hey lakin aqua moxie Kelly, a novel Nissan, a goombah, a goombah... A Kenny’s our body easily kiya hey, yeah. Was such a mark up a time, come on, say yeah. Do practice minute, you’ve bad again be barbiney. A Joe Saral Tassie jukta na, yeah. Just give us can be just gay on harvick Haman na, yeah. Just this, make ya hey yankar na, yeah, wo he such a porous, easily by ya pe. There is a lot of space to forget, but there is very little space for liberation. That is why it is important to recognize the path of liberation. It is the knowledge of the Qur’ān. You can use it from anywhere. The main reason, the main motto, there is a scientific reason and a practical reason why we need to wake up early in the morning, why we need to meditate three times a day at least, and why we need to perform our devotion regularly. There is definitely a reason. That’s why there is one simple story before closing this session I would like to tell. There was a blind person. He wants to cross the street, and another blind person was there, and he thought he’s very weak. And he says, like, "Well, he doesn’t know I’m also blind, so let’s take the opportunity," and he went and held the hand. "Well, I’ll help to cross the street." And he dragged him and made around and round and round circle, but he could not cross the street because he doesn’t have eyes. In the same way, in this world also, people say, "I am the learned person, the intellectual person. I will guide you. I will give you the path. I will give the way," but he himself does not know the way. They also indulge in the material attractions, so how will you have liberation? That is why the Satguru, Satmārga, and the real person need to be your guide. Otherwise, the Buddha says that if you don’t find a real person, a real company, it is better to be alone. Then the insight will guide you. That’s why, rather than being in bad company, remain alone. So, that’s the thing. And Sandhyā is the most beautiful thing in Sipuram. It says that you need to perform your devotion continuously, no matter where you are, especially here on pilgrimage. You are the pilgrimage. You came far away, and the time is finishing day to day. We talk, and the session is finished. Today, we’re going to finish, and similarly, our life will finish. So time is very limited, so that’s why whenever you see any person, say, "Hari Om," but keep in your mind, "This guy is going to die," and say, "Hari Om." Just have a look, "This guy is going to die," but don’t say it outside, otherwise he will slam you, so... Just always remember that, and namaste, Hari Om. This is also going to die, yes, so just keep it in your mind, and that will remind you of death. And this might be your last time meeting with him, so that’s why should we misbehave with him? So this might be the last, so many of us will not meet again. This is my, the last, first and last meeting of our life. So that’s why always keep that immortal mortality in your life. The body is not going, and time is very short, limited. And perform devotion, and one day you will have the kṛpā and Śiva kṛpā and Īśvara kṛpā, Guru kṛpā one day. So we will have to take viśrāma now. Before viśrāma, we will chant Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, and then we will go for lunch. Hari Oṁ. Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya,... Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya... Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya. Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya... Bhole Bhole Śivāya Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Bholo Bholo Śivāya Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Śivāya Śivāya Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya, Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya... Oh yeah, the ṛṣi, no matter what, she said, "Hey, oh sir, bahā pūrṇā." sanayavadyam tatgrihanukhampaya avanam na chaivin na janami, khyamasya parveshvare mantra hinam kriya hinam bhakti hinam janardhanam, yad pujitam maya deva paripurna tadastu Mama tasmāt kāruṇya bhāvena rakṣhimām parameśvara, ha kāra charaṇa kṛtaṁ vā karmajaṁ kāyajaṁ vā śravaṇa nayanajaṁ vā mānasam vā parātaṁ vitam abhītaṁ vā sarvaṁ me tvaṁ kṣamasva, jaya jaya karuṇāvade. Śrī Mahādeva Śambho Oṁ Har Har Mahādev Har Har Mahādev... Hari Oṁ Tat Sat Hari Oṁ Tat Sat.