God is above all Sense Perceptions and is Omnipresent

Discourse of Sathya Sai Baba during the Summer Course in Spirituality and Indian Culture
held for College Students at Brindavan, Whitefield, Bangalore District in May/June 1974
Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
Web posted at Jun 20, 2002

Man indulges in sinful acts with considerable amount of readiness but when it comes to reaping the results of such sinful acts, he shows much hesitation. On the other hand, he will give up doing good work knowingly and with considerable ease. He is always ready to give up doing good deeds.

Pavitratma Swarupas! Students, boys and girls! You have already learnt that Veda teaches you things which are beyond direct evidence as well as even inferential evidence. There is a definition of Veda which states 'Veda Ititi Vedaha' which makes some people think that Veda is preaching you something secret and special which we are not able to understand easily. When we ask the question 'What is it that the Veda tells us?' we begin to learn that the Veda has certain supplementary branches of knowledge as Gandharva Veda, Ayur Veda and Natya Veda. These occur as additions to the Veda. In other words we see that for the word Veda there are certain prefixes which are added. These prefixes explain what the Vedas deal with in that particular part. The prefixes 'Natya', 'Ayu' and 'Gandharva' tell us what it is that we are learning in the Veda.

What is it that the word 'Veda' itself without a prefix tells us? There are four Purusharthas namely 'Dharma', 'Artha', 'Kama', 'Moksha' and the Veda deals with them, not in isolation but in close relationship to the individual and the kind of work the individual has to do in his life. Thus actions of all kinds that concern man at every moment of his life are being dealt with by the Veda in the words 'Dharma', 'Artha', 'Kama' and 'Moksha'. Artha and Kama or wealth and lust are natural to human beings. One should not in that context think that Dharma and Moksha relate to some higher state of life. To think that wealth and lust are important and that Dharma and Moksha are related only to a higher aspect is not correct. It is only when we understand this clearly that we will be able to understand the aspects of Veda, the teachings of the Veda and the significance of the words that are contained in the Veda. We should also understand the significance of life in the manifold Jeevas and know how life has come into them and what happens to life after life departs from the body of a Jeeva.

Only when we can co-ordinate the words creation, maintenance and dissolution, life and grace relating to this world, will we be able to get the full meaning of what is contained in the Vedas. These five words are synonymous with the five Pranas. These five Pranas are the basis for the five Kosas. These five Kosas have also been called the five elemental substances. Amidst these five elemental substances, there is also something which is divine and lets us know the nature of the inner self. The five Karmendriyas or the working organs are externally visible. But we also know the five sense perceptions. Besides these, we should recognise the inner organ called Anthakarana. Associated with this inner Anthakarana is the Atma or the inner self and in the context of this Atma, you have to use the word 'Hiranya'. 'Hiranya' signifies to us the life forces. The word 'Hiranya' literally means gold. Through the help of fine gold, one can get rid of all impurities. Because of this capacity to remove the impurities and to cleanse with the help of fire, Agni or fire has been associated with the word 'Dharma' and such fire has another name 'Pavaka'. This strength or capacity by which it can purify matter is also called an aspect of 'Pavaka'. Because it is filled with the aspect of 'Hitaramya' it is also called 'Hiranya'. The subtle body is to be described as 'Hitaramya' but gradually the name has changed into 'Hiranya'. 'Hitaramya' became 'Hiranya' and in common parlance it became 'Hiramya'. Here the aspect of Brahman associated with Hiramya has been dealt with in the aspect of Saraswati. Just as Agni can cleanse, purify and remove all impurities in matter, the inner organs can be purified by Saraswati.

In this context, because of its ability to cleanse the inner organs, Saraswati has also got the name 'Pavaka'. You can remove your ignorance, if you listen to Saraswati. Therefore, Saraswati has the capacity to remove your ignorance through this process of listening. Because of this capacity by which it can remove your ignorance and give you Pragnana, Saraswati has been called 'Pavaka'. It has also been called by a sacred name 'Pavana'. This word 'Pavana' means breeze or air. This divine air or breeze takes the form of life in every individual. This aspect of life which we recognise as being present in everyone is referred to as the aspect of Bharata. This aspect of Bharata which is synonymous with the aspect of life in everyone has also been identified with the Aditya. As such, the alternative name 'Pavaka' became common for Aditya also and has become common for Bharata as well.

Thus, Ida, Saraswati and Vayu have become synonymous with the aspect of Bharata. Therefore in the inner place where the Atma resides because of aspect of Ida and Saraswati also being resident, the aspect of Bharata is also resident. The coincidence of the inner Atma and the aspect of Bharata is not being recognised by us and therefore we are not placing the word Bharata on the heights where it should be placed. We are thinking that it signifies the name of a country. This is wrong. The poets, writers and historians did not go into details of the origin of the word Bharata and they drew conclusions which are not fully acceptable in the context of what is being said now about Mantras.

Only those of our Rishis who had mastery over the Vedas were the people who could claim to be true poets. It is appropriate to call only such people who are well versed in Vedas as poets. To accept that a person who has only poetic strength can become a Rishi is very inappropriate. The Rishis of the old days had their minds pure and clear and thus they could look at the divine and hence they were called Kanta Darahana. Those people could look at the past, present and future in one glance. On account of their purity they could comprehend the three aspects of time, namely past, present and future, all at one instant. Here we can recognise that the name 'Rishi' is appropriate to only those who can comprehend all the three divisions of time, and the three worlds and the trinity aspect of divinity. Because such sacred Rishis turned into writers, the Puranas and Itihasas which they wrote acquired such fame and importance. People like Valmiki and Vyasa were Rishis first by their Tapas and clarity of mind and afterwards only they became writers and poets. One may ask why these Rishis had to turn poets, when they already had the aspect of Iswara in them. This they did because they wanted to convey to the rest of the world the difficult aspects of divinity in an easy manner through their writings. The Rishis of the old not only enjoyed the bliss and happiness associated with the aspect of God, but were also anxious to convey the same to others and so they earned God's grace and undertook to write sacred stories which conveyed happiness and bliss to others. This is a readily recognisable feature of the citizens of Bharat in the early days. They realised that the bliss of divinity which they enjoyed was not for their selfish purposes, they communicated it to people who are engaged in the worldly aspects as well.

There are three methods of learning, namely Sravana that is to listen, Manana that is to think over again and Nididhyasana that is to assimilate. In these three levels of learning, they installed Saraswati, Bharati and Ida. You have now recognised that these three names are three parts of the same aspect. Truly what you have listened to cannot be well acquired and assimilated only by just listening. You have to do some Manana or think it over and then you have to absorb what you have listened to and this is Nididhyasana. If you do all three - listen, think over and absorb, then only you can enjoy the fruits of what you have listened to. There is a small illustration for this.

Suppose some food is cooked in your kitchen. Will your hunger be relieved only by looking at what has been cooked? Even if you just eat what has been cooked, will you derive the necessary strength from the nourishment which was gone into you. Only if you digest the food that has gone into you, can you get the nourishment. Like cooking, eating and then digesting are three essential processes in order that you may get the ultimate result, so also Sravana, Manana and Nididhyasana must follow each other so that it may give you the ultimate result. Then only can you get some aspect of the Atma Vidya or some knowledge from what you listen to. People who just listen and do not do any Manana are like those who just see cooked food in a kitchen and do not attempt to eat it.

There may be a number of edible things in the kitchen but this in itself is not enough and does not relieve one's hunger. Only if one eats them will one get some benefit. This stage can be compared to listening and also giving some thought to what one has listened to. After this what you have listened to must be absorbed into yourself. Then only, you will get full benefit out of what you have listened to. The three steps are Sravana, Manana and Nididhyasana. Poets are of the view that just by listening to things, one gets full benefit. The Rishis having acquired the Ananda or bliss after going through various stages and absorbing such Ananda will hand over the bliss which they enjoyed to worldly people and they will follow up with Manana and Nididhyasana. For this, there is a small illustration.

A scholar takes into his hands a big book and he will be turning page after page in this book. Such a scholar who is turning the pages of this book will be giving attention to the contents of the book. On the other hand we can take the case of a small child who is looking at the same book. The child's attention is drawn only to the pictures in the book but to nothing else. Here, the meaning is that the child who is enjoying only the pictures can be compared to a poet. On the other hand, the one who is reading the contents and absorbing the book can be compared to a Rishi. If you look at the pictures only, can you understand the detailed contents? Will the darkness on the earth disappear if you only listen to the news of a lamp existing somewhere? Will the hunger of a hungry man be relieved, if he only hears the names of many sweet things? Will the poverty of a poor man disappear if he only hears the potential of great wealth and prosperity? The disease of a man is not going to be cured if he simply hears the names of all the medicines that are available. The hunger of a man is not going to be relieved by his hearing the names of sweet things. The poverty of a man is not going to be relieved if he just hears that a lot of money exists in a bank. The darkness of a blind man is not going to be removed by telling him that there is light somewhere.

So also, poets and writers have been reading and writing things without realising the essential meaning of what they have been writing. They were interpreting the word Bharata incorrectly and they did not get the full meaning thereof. If you remain where you are and stand at the same level as the ocean, the ocean will appear as if it is infinite and a very big one indeed. If the same observer goes high up, the same ocean will look as if it is much smaller and in fact looks like a lake. As in this analogy, because the Rishis were in a high place of spiritual knowledge and away from the world, they could recognise this vast world as a very small and unimportant one. When one is at a lower level, he thinks that the world is big, important and manifold. The diversity and the differences will be seen more clearly. But when one goes to a high position, everything will look smooth, small and even. When we have a narrow vision, our country, our people, our languages will all appear full of problems and differences. If you can go to a high place and look at the world, it will appear in one unified aspect and all the people and all languages will appear as one. The word Bharata is associated with Aditya, the sun. Aditya or sun belongs to the whole world and in the same manner, Bharata does not apply only to a portion of this world. It applies to the entire world. Each of the countries in the world cannot think that the sun belongs to that country. For instance, there cannot be an Indian sun, African sun or an American sun. There is only one sun which is giving light and brightness to all the countries in the world.

There is one other illustration for this. Suppose we have a mud pot, a silver pot, a copper pot and a bronze pot and if there is water in these four pots, the reflection of the sun will be seen in each of these four pots and we have to realise that it is the same sun that we are seeing in each pot. The only difference is in the value of the vessel and not in the sun. These pots may be compared to different countries. The people who live in each one of these countries may be compared to the water in each one of the pots and the reflection of the Aditya or the sun is to be compared to the concept which people of each country form of one and the same divinity.

Because of their great good fortune, the people of this country have understood the full significance of this word Bharat and gave this name for our country. People living in other countries did not understand the full meaning of this Vedic word and so they did not adopt this name. We have already stated that Pavaka is a name synonymous with Bharata. This name Pavaka signifies the aspect of cleansing the individual and therefore Pavaka and Brahman are words placed very high in our country. People who have the proper Samskara or tradition alone can appreciate the full meaning of the Vedic words Bharata and Pavaka. It is in this context that the Sruthi has been teaching us that Paramatma is made out of the aspects which are above the five sense perceptions. We should make an attempt to understand what is meant by above sense perceptions. There is a small example for this.

In the five elemental substances, matter or earth is the first one. Earth is bound down by the five perceptions - sound, touch, form, taste and smell. The next stage of elemental substances is water. In water, we find that one of the qualities namely smell is not found. Thus water becomes a little lighter and more mobile than earth because one of the binding qualities is missing. Water can therefore move from place to place on its own. In the third elemental substance, Agni, we have the qualities of sound, touch and form but there is neither taste nor smell for fire and so fire is much lighter and can move freely upwards. The next element is air. We find that it is characterised only by sound and touch. The other three qualities of form, taste and smell are given up. Air becomes very light and it moves freely from place to place in all directions. We come to the fourth element, namely space. Of all the five qualities of perception only the quality of sound is left. It has neither taste, nor smell, nor touch nor form. Therefore, space has become much lighter, in fact the lightest and is present everywhere. So when we referred to Paratma as being above the sense perceptions, we meant that He is free from all attributes of sense perceptions or Gunas. It is in this context that our Sruthis have taught us that Paramatma is above all the five elements and is so light that omnipresence becomes His attribute. This is described by saying that He is contained in the smallest of small particles, that is Anu, and in the largest of large things. He is both infinitesimally small and infinitely large.

What we have to learn from here is that as we shed our desires and illusion, we will be able to lead a life with broader views. The aspect of gradually giving up desires is referred to as Viragya in the language of the Vedanta. Less luggage and more comfort makes travel a pleasure. When our ancestors referred to Viragya, they meant that you must give up the luggage of your desires and wishes and thus make life less burdensome. By Viragya is not meant giving up your family and children and going away to a forest. This is not the meaning of Viragya.

It is the practice of our countrymen to stand before an idol and praying to it. We may ask how one can reach the infinite by worship of a transient thing like a picture or an idol. We must realise that one may worship a picture as a God but not God as a picture. That is, you can raise a picture to the level of God by your worship but not lower God to the level of a picture. Knowing such inner meanings, you should raise your ideas to a high level. I am hoping that the youth will realise the true nature of these statements and take it as their duty to re-establish Dharma and take this country to glorious heights.