Robert: Om, shanti, shanti, om.
Good evening. It's good to be with you again. Welcome. I want you to ask yourself the question, "What is my real reason for coming here tonight? Why have I decided to come to a meeting like this? What do I want to achieve? What am I looking for?" If you're real honest with yourself you will find most people are interested in improving their humanhood. They want to become better human beings. They want to improve their affairs, their health, their finances, their positions, their status. And of course you realize this is the wrong reason for coming here.
We're not interested in your humanhood, for the premise of this teaching is you are inhuman. You are not your body, nor your mind, nor are you the doer. So to improve your humanhood is folly. You're not trying to become better human beings. You’re trying to forget that you are a human being and focus your attention on your divinity, on your self, on the I am, until your humanhood has been transcended and transmuted. That's called liberation or awakening, which is really your real nature. Then you are free.
Sometimes it's difficult to understand. What if I'm dying of a disease? What if I'm impoverished? What if people are trying to kill me? How can I forget about that? If I become self-realized what will happen to my body? Will it continue being sick, or impoverished, or waiting to be killed? By asking a question like that, you're taking the wrong direction.
You don't exist as you appear. You have no body. The body appears to be real, but upon investigation you will find that it’s not. When you discover your reality, your real nature, the body is transcended. It no longer is the same thing to you. It may appear real to others, but to you it's no longer there. It is like the water in the mirage. It appears to be real, but it’s not. As far as your bodily functions are concerned, they will go on. That's how it will appear to others. Your body will appear to go through experiences, but not to you when you are awakened. You will appear to be the doer to others, but not to you.
You're not trying to hide it, or make believe that you don't have a body. You do not even identify with something that makes you think you don't have a body. You become yourself, absolute reality. That's what you've always been, pure awareness, sat-chit-ananda, I am that I am. That is your real nature right now. That's what you really are.
This is why it was difficult to understand when people like Ramana Maharshi or Ramakrishna were dying from cancer. Devotees were weeping, crying, and both Ramana and Ramakrishna tried to explain, "Don't be fools. I'm not going anywhere. I am where I will always be. What you see is not a true picture." Yet the devotees still couldn't understand, because they were coming from a human standpoint, and of course in the human world, there's suffering, there's death, there’s birth, there’s misery, there’re all kinds of things. And there are also beautiful things. But they are all part of the same maya, the same grand illusion.
Therefore try to understand this. Everything will work out. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. All is well. The more you try to think about your body, in order to improve it any way, the worse it will become, for you are using your mind to out-picture something that perhaps is not your karma. When I tell you, "Do not worry about your body," I know from whence I speak. Your body does not exist. It never existed. It never will exist. Your real nature is unbounding joy, love, peace. You are not what appears to be.
Do not be afraid. There is no thing in the universe that can possibly hurt you. Everything is all right. If you believe in a God, see that God as omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. Realize that that God is your true nature, that God is you, no one else, but not as your ego, not as your body, not as your mind, but as you. You are that. Understand the true meaning of the self, unalloyed happiness, pure intelligence, ultimate oneness. You are that. You focus your mind on God, by realizing I am. I am not this nor that, just I am. I have always been and I will always be.
Do not pray for things. Spend your time identifying with your self. Praying for things is a waste of time. You may get the things, but you'll be sorry afterwards.
It reminds me of the story of this Catholic man who wanted $50,000 to remodel his home. So he went to his church and he said, "Father, I have been coming to this church since I was a child. Now I need $50,000 to remodel my home. Can you please let me have it?" And the father said, "Son, we do not lend money here, nor give money. Go home and pray to Jesus and you may get it."
So he went home and got on his knees and he said, "Jesus, I have to remodel my home. Please give me $50,000." Nothing happened. He did this everyday for a month, and nothing happened.
So he said, "Jesus, I'll make a deal with you. I'll take $25,000. Can you see your way to let me have that? Nothing happened. He prayed for $25,000 all month, and nothing happened.
So he got angry. He got up one dark night and went to the church, snuck in, and stole the statue of the Mother Mary, Jesus’ mother, took it home, got a handkerchief, tied it around her mouth, got another handkerchief, tied it to her eyes, and said, "OK Jesus. If you want to see your mother again, you'd better get me $25,000.
That's the way we pray. We think that God is going to give us gifts, presents, if we pray hard enough. And sometimes we get them, and that's unfortunate, for then we believe that whatever we need, we just have to pray. Prayer has its points. It can increase your concentration, and make you come closer to the deity of your choice, but asking for gifts is a mistake, for you just might get them, and then your problems will really start.
Forget about your body, your needs. Everything will work out. Ask yourself, "Who has to do all these things? Who’s worried? Who fears?" and wait. The answer will come, "I am. I fear. " Then what is the source of the I? And trace the I to it's source, by holding on to it, by following the I, abiding in the I. The day will come when you finally awaken and you will be free.
What I'm simply telling you is this. Make your life simple. Keep inquiring, "Who am I?" Whatever your need may be, whatever your position is, wherever you come from, makes no difference. Do not compare yourself with anyone else. Keep inquiring, "Who am I? Where did this I come from? What is its source?" Follow the I to the spiritual heart center, on the right side of your chest. Allow it to merge.
The spiritual heart center is the self. It is infinity. Watch yourself, be aware of your thoughts. Whatever thoughts come to you, good or bad, always ask yourself, "To whom do they come?" You do this all day long. Catch yourself. Remind yourself. When you ask, "To whom do they come?" observe the thoughts that come into your head. Become the witness. Then ask yourself again, "To whom do they come?" Do the same thing.
You can do this when you're meditating formally if you want to, or do it during the day, all day, even when you're sleeping. Forget about time. Forget about the world. Remember, when I say, "Forget about the world," I'm not saying to ignore your responsibilities. There’s something that will take care of them. There's something that knows how to take care of your body, that you believe is real.
That's the wonderful thing about this teaching. You do not have to wonder about your body. You do not have to worry that if you do not do so and so, such and such, the work will not get done. Your body will continue to do whatever it came here to do. It has absolutely nothing to do with you. Leave your body alone. It will always take care of itself. You do the work you came here to do. That's abiding in the self, the source, the spiritual center on the right side of your chest. The I appears to have come from that. The I appears to emanate from the spiritual center. That's how it appears to rise, when you wake up. When you were asleep, the I subsided in your chest, in your heart.
When you wake up, become aware, what happens? Notice how the I becomes larger. It goes from your heart to your brain. When it gets to your brain you identify with the world. You say, "I am hungry. I am thirsty. I am late. I need this. I need that," yet when you’re falling asleep, those thoughts begin to leave you as the I subsides again into the spiritual center.
Become aware of this. Watch what happens. Observe. Catch the I doing all those things. This is called abiding in the I, when you watch the I becoming stronger as it goes to your brain, and you become worldly, and again when you fall asleep, the I leaves your brain and goes back down to the spiritual center.
The whole secret is to keep the I in the spiritual center at all times. This is called liberation. And this happens by inquiring, "Who am I?" What you are really saying is, "What is the source of the I?" You have been watching. You have been observing. You have been observing the I going back to the spiritual center at night, as you’re falling asleep, and you have been observing the I coming to life again, as you wake up, and you inquire, "What is this I? Who gave it life? Where did it come from? What is its source?" and you keep still. As thoughts come to you, you inquire, "To whom do they come?" You do this again, and again, and again.
One day something will happen. Your I will melt into the source while you’re awake, and you will experience yourself as consciousness, as pure awareness, as absolute reality, and you will be free.
Om, nama Shivaya, peace.
Good evening. It's good to be with you again. Welcome. I want you to ask yourself the question, "What is my real reason for coming here tonight? Why have I decided to come to a meeting like this? What do I want to achieve? What am I looking for?" If you're real honest with yourself you will find most people are interested in improving their humanhood. They want to become better human beings. They want to improve their affairs, their health, their finances, their positions, their status. And of course you realize this is the wrong reason for coming here.
We're not interested in your humanhood, for the premise of this teaching is you are inhuman. You are not your body, nor your mind, nor are you the doer. So to improve your humanhood is folly. You're not trying to become better human beings. You’re trying to forget that you are a human being and focus your attention on your divinity, on your self, on the I am, until your humanhood has been transcended and transmuted. That's called liberation or awakening, which is really your real nature. Then you are free.
Sometimes it's difficult to understand. What if I'm dying of a disease? What if I'm impoverished? What if people are trying to kill me? How can I forget about that? If I become self-realized what will happen to my body? Will it continue being sick, or impoverished, or waiting to be killed? By asking a question like that, you're taking the wrong direction.
You don't exist as you appear. You have no body. The body appears to be real, but upon investigation you will find that it’s not. When you discover your reality, your real nature, the body is transcended. It no longer is the same thing to you. It may appear real to others, but to you it's no longer there. It is like the water in the mirage. It appears to be real, but it’s not. As far as your bodily functions are concerned, they will go on. That's how it will appear to others. Your body will appear to go through experiences, but not to you when you are awakened. You will appear to be the doer to others, but not to you.
You're not trying to hide it, or make believe that you don't have a body. You do not even identify with something that makes you think you don't have a body. You become yourself, absolute reality. That's what you've always been, pure awareness, sat-chit-ananda, I am that I am. That is your real nature right now. That's what you really are.
This is why it was difficult to understand when people like Ramana Maharshi or Ramakrishna were dying from cancer. Devotees were weeping, crying, and both Ramana and Ramakrishna tried to explain, "Don't be fools. I'm not going anywhere. I am where I will always be. What you see is not a true picture." Yet the devotees still couldn't understand, because they were coming from a human standpoint, and of course in the human world, there's suffering, there's death, there’s birth, there’s misery, there’re all kinds of things. And there are also beautiful things. But they are all part of the same maya, the same grand illusion.
Therefore try to understand this. Everything will work out. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. All is well. The more you try to think about your body, in order to improve it any way, the worse it will become, for you are using your mind to out-picture something that perhaps is not your karma. When I tell you, "Do not worry about your body," I know from whence I speak. Your body does not exist. It never existed. It never will exist. Your real nature is unbounding joy, love, peace. You are not what appears to be.
Do not be afraid. There is no thing in the universe that can possibly hurt you. Everything is all right. If you believe in a God, see that God as omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. Realize that that God is your true nature, that God is you, no one else, but not as your ego, not as your body, not as your mind, but as you. You are that. Understand the true meaning of the self, unalloyed happiness, pure intelligence, ultimate oneness. You are that. You focus your mind on God, by realizing I am. I am not this nor that, just I am. I have always been and I will always be.
Do not pray for things. Spend your time identifying with your self. Praying for things is a waste of time. You may get the things, but you'll be sorry afterwards.
It reminds me of the story of this Catholic man who wanted $50,000 to remodel his home. So he went to his church and he said, "Father, I have been coming to this church since I was a child. Now I need $50,000 to remodel my home. Can you please let me have it?" And the father said, "Son, we do not lend money here, nor give money. Go home and pray to Jesus and you may get it."
So he went home and got on his knees and he said, "Jesus, I have to remodel my home. Please give me $50,000." Nothing happened. He did this everyday for a month, and nothing happened.
So he said, "Jesus, I'll make a deal with you. I'll take $25,000. Can you see your way to let me have that? Nothing happened. He prayed for $25,000 all month, and nothing happened.
So he got angry. He got up one dark night and went to the church, snuck in, and stole the statue of the Mother Mary, Jesus’ mother, took it home, got a handkerchief, tied it around her mouth, got another handkerchief, tied it to her eyes, and said, "OK Jesus. If you want to see your mother again, you'd better get me $25,000.
That's the way we pray. We think that God is going to give us gifts, presents, if we pray hard enough. And sometimes we get them, and that's unfortunate, for then we believe that whatever we need, we just have to pray. Prayer has its points. It can increase your concentration, and make you come closer to the deity of your choice, but asking for gifts is a mistake, for you just might get them, and then your problems will really start.
Forget about your body, your needs. Everything will work out. Ask yourself, "Who has to do all these things? Who’s worried? Who fears?" and wait. The answer will come, "I am. I fear. " Then what is the source of the I? And trace the I to it's source, by holding on to it, by following the I, abiding in the I. The day will come when you finally awaken and you will be free.
What I'm simply telling you is this. Make your life simple. Keep inquiring, "Who am I?" Whatever your need may be, whatever your position is, wherever you come from, makes no difference. Do not compare yourself with anyone else. Keep inquiring, "Who am I? Where did this I come from? What is its source?" Follow the I to the spiritual heart center, on the right side of your chest. Allow it to merge.
The spiritual heart center is the self. It is infinity. Watch yourself, be aware of your thoughts. Whatever thoughts come to you, good or bad, always ask yourself, "To whom do they come?" You do this all day long. Catch yourself. Remind yourself. When you ask, "To whom do they come?" observe the thoughts that come into your head. Become the witness. Then ask yourself again, "To whom do they come?" Do the same thing.
You can do this when you're meditating formally if you want to, or do it during the day, all day, even when you're sleeping. Forget about time. Forget about the world. Remember, when I say, "Forget about the world," I'm not saying to ignore your responsibilities. There’s something that will take care of them. There's something that knows how to take care of your body, that you believe is real.
That's the wonderful thing about this teaching. You do not have to wonder about your body. You do not have to worry that if you do not do so and so, such and such, the work will not get done. Your body will continue to do whatever it came here to do. It has absolutely nothing to do with you. Leave your body alone. It will always take care of itself. You do the work you came here to do. That's abiding in the self, the source, the spiritual center on the right side of your chest. The I appears to have come from that. The I appears to emanate from the spiritual center. That's how it appears to rise, when you wake up. When you were asleep, the I subsided in your chest, in your heart.
When you wake up, become aware, what happens? Notice how the I becomes larger. It goes from your heart to your brain. When it gets to your brain you identify with the world. You say, "I am hungry. I am thirsty. I am late. I need this. I need that," yet when you’re falling asleep, those thoughts begin to leave you as the I subsides again into the spiritual center.
Become aware of this. Watch what happens. Observe. Catch the I doing all those things. This is called abiding in the I, when you watch the I becoming stronger as it goes to your brain, and you become worldly, and again when you fall asleep, the I leaves your brain and goes back down to the spiritual center.
The whole secret is to keep the I in the spiritual center at all times. This is called liberation. And this happens by inquiring, "Who am I?" What you are really saying is, "What is the source of the I?" You have been watching. You have been observing. You have been observing the I going back to the spiritual center at night, as you’re falling asleep, and you have been observing the I coming to life again, as you wake up, and you inquire, "What is this I? Who gave it life? Where did it come from? What is its source?" and you keep still. As thoughts come to you, you inquire, "To whom do they come?" You do this again, and again, and again.
One day something will happen. Your I will melt into the source while you’re awake, and you will experience yourself as consciousness, as pure awareness, as absolute reality, and you will be free.
Om, nama Shivaya, peace.