A child at birth is a little god – he is just who he is, pristine and pure. He loves himself, is utterly absorbed with himself. As a toddler he imbibes things like a sponge, soaking up everything around - ideas, beliefs and values taught to him. Then ‘training’ begins, ostensibly to make him a responsible adult but actually to make him follow the herd, and slowly, his untainted mind starts getting polluted. Rather than guiding, parents often nag their...

India is a land with a long tradition of great masters and great yogis. And there are countless stories depicting their amazing lives and teachings. One such story is about a yogi from Maharashtra (in central India) called Changdev Maharaj. He entered a state of samadhi and stayed in that state for almost three hundred years. When he came out of samadhi, his age was almost four hundred years. Emerging from the cave, he asked the locals what year...

Meditation is the gateway to inner awakening. It is the door that opens up the possibility of self-realisation. It is the sword that destroys all ignorance forever. Imagine being free of all bondages and sufferings, not enslaved to anyone or anything, supremely happy and content, mind in perennial peace, having complete clarity of one’s real identity and the meaning of life being crystal clear…can there be anything more precious than this achievement in life? Can any worldly...

Mantra should be the focus; and once the mantra is done then that is your time to sit as long as mind wishes to. It is like those old hand pumps which used to pump water, if you have ever seen one. When it dried up one would just put some water into it and pump until it brought out the water. Once the water started coming then you pumped just once and there was lots of water. Pumping...

Meditation is not about doing but being. Thus all that is done in the name of meditation is not meditation at all! It is not something which can be handed over to you on a platter, it is not something that can be bestowed upon you. Meditation is an effortless effort. The effort is required only in the beginning to create the right inner milieu for meditation to happen effortlessly. Thus, you take effort to sit properly and practise...

‘That which stretches the mind’ – this is the root meaning of the word ‘mantra’. Mind in Sanskrit is ‘mann’. Both, mann and mantra, originate from the same root. Mind is the reason of all human suffering and sorrows. That is why we need to give the mind a right direction. Mind can be a powerful tool if we know how to harness its power. A weak mind is the source of depression, anger, helplessness and diseases. On the contrary,...

ananya-cetāḥ satataṃ yo māṃ smarati nityaśaḥ| tasyāhaṃ sulabhaḥ pārtha nitya-yuktasya yoginaḥ||14||

With the grace of the master, realisation dawns that the ephemeral cannot ever know the eternal. Then one turns within, passionately seeking the Beloved, offering the lotus of the heart at the feet of the master, for only the Lord, the master, loves unconditionally. One prays whole-heartedly for this benediction to fill one’s being. Describing this state, a poet poignantly appeals, “Oh breath, flow gently, your movement disturbs my prayer...”

It is difficult to be born as a human being. It is even more difficult for wisdom to awaken within, which ultimately gives rise to the urge to make the most of human life. If this wisdom doesn’t awaken, people waste their entire lives in the pursuit of sensory gratification. It is only as a result of good fortune that someone gets blessed with the company of sages. And it is in this hallowed company that there is...

The word ‘chitta’ means both, the subconscious and the unconscious mind. All our past karmas leave deep impressions in the subconscious mind. It means that all the seeds of your past actions lie in your own subconscious. The conscious mind is restless and cannot retain information for long. You don’t know what you had for breakfast ten years ago, one year ago, a month ago or even a week ago…Why? Because the conscious mind is unable to...

It doesn’t matter what Sri Krishna did or didn’t do, because for him karma was just a make-believe game. It is a fact that all actions performed after attaining the discerning knowledge of what the truth is and what the untruth is, are no more than part of a mirthful play. That is why Sri Krishna’s physical presence on this earth is referred to as his leelā, which means divine play. What merit or demerit, heaven...

There is no separation between God and us. It is just that we are still in a deep, dark sleep of ignorance. So, all that needs to be done is: just wake up!.