“We shall talk today about an extraordinary scientist, a real scientist…”

We shall talk today about an extraordinary scientist, a real scientist of the inner world. His name is Patanjali, a great enlightened master of ancient Bharat. We remember him for his great book, the book of books, the root for millions of books. He created a formula and aphorism for spiritual philosophy.

All spiritual literature can be classified into 3 categories: one outlining goals of what you wish to achieve, about life, death, what happens after death, what is atman etc, books of philosophy, sastras. These books speak about the truth beyond life and death, intellectual material. Difficulty is that this philosophy is not a method or technique to transform your life. They are perceptions of individual philosophers. Millions have answered the question of what happens after death, and yet it is a virgin question. We do not know the answer. Each person who tried to answer created one school of philosophy. These books do not give any answers, no solutions.

There is a second level of literature, songs in praise of God. These are for emotional people , fairy tales. Third kind of spiritual literature is for those seeking solutions, a seeker at the being level, asking for clear cut explanations of spirituality. These are sutras, the aphorisms, techniques to provide solutions.

A young man asks Socrates: Should I marry. Socrates had a terrible wife, who used to beat him. Socrates said: you should marry. Only two things can happen. You can have a good wife and lead a happy life. Or you will be like me, and become a philosopher and it will be good for other people.

People who are not happy, down to earth create philosophies. Philosophy is complicate truths, to make people not understand what they should understand. Like psychiatry, try to cure, but not to cure. Philosophers only arise questions, never answer, only postpone answers. You will be happy with one philosopher's answers till you read another philosopher. More philosophy, more confusion.

Devotional literature is equally fruitless. It's very easy to love a person in front of you. You can love god, but not your wife and neighbor. Your love of God is all unfulfilled fantasies. You may feel hurt. Please understand that to most of you God is only a concept. How can you love a concept that you do not even know.

Patanjali from the first word says let us look for truth. Would other literature provide you life solutions? Or are they just entertainment, passing time? You can sing song praising God and spend time. There are millions of songs praising God. In olden days as there was no TV or movies this was good entertainment. But something more than philosophy, food for intellect, brain candy and devotional literature are good, but not for the ultimate experience or experiencing reality.

Patanjail's book is called Yoga Sutra: Aphorisms to achieve union with the ultimate energy. His sutras or aphorism teach you how to achieve this union. Of thousands of books I have read this is the most scientific, most practical. There is a movie called What the Bleep do we know, explaining Quantum Physics, another book Fabric of Cosmos. Patanjali is more practical and more scientific than any of these excellent books and movies.

A Scientist has thirst for truth; he analyses data without prejudice; he has the courage to follow the conclusion of his research. One who has all these qualities and one who does not compromise on any of these parameters is a scientist. Patanjali is an extraordinary scientist and is the father of all eastern philosophy and religions. From Jesus teachings it appears that he has been influenced by Patanjali. There is a book on the Life of Jesus, Da Vinci Codes, which is controversial, which raises some of these questions. Patanjali has inspired all those who came after him, knowingly or unknowingly.

Patanjali radiates all these qualities with purity. When Galileo said that Earth is not flat and that the Erath follows the Sun, there was so much opposition to make him recant. He had to withdraw his views under pressure from religious leaders. He said I have to change my views, but the Sun and earth will not change their nature. But Patanjali does not bend, does not change his views.

Even in modern day research, researchers have to listen to their fund providers, In olden days they were controlled by Kings and religious leaders. A scientist researches and provides a formula to reproduce their results in the outer world. A mystic produces a formula to reproduce experiences in the inner world. Patanjali's sutras are valid even after 5,000 years; they are still fool proof and still produce intended results.

Many produced formulas which suited only specific groups; intellectuals, emotional people, Being level people, men, women etc. There is a book, Men are from Mars Women are from Venus. Someone said that this is not correct, they can not be from same universe, their distance is too great. Here is a Master who provided techniques to open all doors to all people; Patanjali says these promises are for the whole world.

I was traveling with a Professor on comparative religions. I asked him for percentages of different religious groups. He asked do you want published figures or real figures of those who practice these religious sincerely. These two figures are very different, he said. When I studied statistics at least 25% of all Americans have practiced one form of Yoga or another. At least 10% practice regularly.

Edison discovered light. Once discovered it belonged to the whole world. Patanjali discovered the truth of inner light and made it available to the whole world. There was no copyright fortunately. Patanjali is great because he did not create an organization. Once an organization is created truth is created. A real rose is beautiful and God given. A plastic rose is not. The difference between truth and organized religion is the same as between a real rose and plastic roses.

Another great Master J Krishnamurthy said after creating his organization that the organization has only the right to publish his teaching and writings, but not to comment upon them. If Krishna and Jesus meet they will hug each other; but Krishna's cows and Jesus's goats will bicker and fight with each other. Masters are truth, followers corrupt. Organizations and followers create complications so as to exploit people, to control people.

Some one asked: What is the difference between Sankara's teachings and Buddha's? Sankara talks about atman and brahman, Buddha says there is no self; Sankara says purna, Buddha says sunya. I said what they say is the same, their experiences are the same, but copyrights are different. A yoga magazine talked about super deluxe Kundalini Yoga. I wondered where does this title come from? The guy said that the word is his copy right.

Patanjali says when my teachings are no longer true, this book will die; let it live as long as it is the ultimate truth. I want only truth to survive. If I create an organization, my followers will try for the survival of the organization not the truth. If Krishna and Buddha descend today their temples will not welcome them; it will disturb their vested interests.

This openness is what makes me call him a saintist, a saint and a scientist, a mystic and scientist combined in one. He created this book to understand how to reach the ultimate truth and then is ready to stand by and let his book be replaced if some one else comes up with a greater truth. We still can not add a single word to enhance his sayings. Only a person who is so confident can be so open. It is like a money back guarantee, which is possible only if you have absolute confidence in yourself and what you believe in and say.

We shall go into details of his book over the next few days.

Patanjali has created a navigator to guide us in the spiritual inner world of body, mind and spirit. He has solutions, down to earth and practical, for modern day problems. He is neither a philosopher nor a devotional muse. There is not one word, one line that can be disputed or disproved. He is an atheist, because he does not say God exists, he just shows you the way, gives you the techniques to realize divinity. but he is not a fanatic. It is easy to a believer in the divine, because we do not understand creation, who created it and how. To be an atheist you have to disbelieve what you see around you. You have to deny your senses. You need to be a fanatic.

The first verse of Patanjali is: Yogaha chitta vritti nirodaha. Yoga is the cessation of mind. Where mind drops that is union. When you achieve the ultimate experience mind sops functioning. As long as mind exists you can experience the union. You will be in dilemma. I always say: Jump before you think, otherwise you will never jump. Mind only creates confusion; it dissects and creates categories. Only when you go beyond mind and logic you can find truth.

There is no gap between you and the divine. You are divine, whether you accept it or not, believe it or not, understand it or not.

A man was told his wife is drowning. He jumped into the river and swam in the opposite directions. People shouted at him what are you doing. He said you do not know my wife she always goes against the current.

So can you and flounder. When mind stops you experience the divinity within you.

The first line gives you the conclusion.

There are many books on how to present. If you wish to catch your audience you have only 30 seconds to inspire them. Even 30 seconds is too much. You already decide by them. Based on this decision you keep collecting data on speaker. These books say that right in the beginning you have to make a powerful statement. Patanjali here gives you all in one: the goal is to experience the divine, the path is to stop the mind and the end result which the Union with the divine. The entire book is a commentary and explanation on this one line.

Let us now see how to drop the mind and reach the divine, Patanjali's techniques, teachings and methods.

Q: Patanjali 10,000 years or 2000 years old? A: If my disciple writes a book many years after me, it will be under my name. Similarly others many centuries later disciples wrote following Patanjali. If you study the language used by Patanjali his works are at least 10000 years old. Unfortunately Bharatns are very weak in history, in happenings; only in content and philosophy. We do not know for certain dates of birth of any great master, whether Sankara, Buddha or Krishna. History is called puranas, truths, not facts; there are important differences. Truth is the impact of the incidents, the facts on human life; they preferred to record those truths rather than the facts.

A man goes with his friend to a mango friend. The friend was calculating the crop size and money realizable while this man was focusing on eating and enjoying the mangoes. Who is more intelligent?

Now we can identify the period based on the evolution of the language. Patanjali lived in Rameshwaram in South Bharat where there is a tomb. They can also fix the age based on the tomb structure.

All Patanjali's disciples are called Patanjali, like Sankara's disciples are called Sankara; after a while you forget which disciple he is. An enlightened Master become one with the truth, therefore you remember only the truth.

Patanjali had hidden himself so well, nothing except what he wrote is now available. He kept himself away from his own discoveries, the truths. To use electricity you need to know nothing about Edison, all you have to do switch on and off to enjoy the fruits of his discovery.

Modern day psychologists like Freud and others look too small compared to Patanjali. Freud had only sick people to study, not enlightened Masters. He had no chance. After 35 years of research Freud comes to a conclusion that man can not be healed, that man has to suffer. Patanjali himself was enlightened and was surrounded by other Masters; he could therefore talk about a higher truth of bliss.

Philosophy is right only after your experience, not when you read. Vedanta says everything is God. True. But you can not stand in the middle of the road and say a car will not run me down because both are God.

A great Master teaches hid disciples that all is God. While bathing in the river next morning a mad elephant came charging and every body except one disciple ran away. The mahout shouts at him to run away. This disciple stayed on saying that he is God and te elephant is also God. The master later asked him, after he was injured by the elephant, why did you not run away. Master said: but the mahout too was God and he warned you to run away.

We understand truths only partly. Unrealized truths, half truths are worse than lies. Vedanta is truth. You have to however realize the vedantic truths before they work for you. Truth before experience is very different from truth after experience. Master speaks from experience. You listen without experience. My words will not have the same meaning in your dictionary.

A lady was trying on a fur coat. Her small daughter asks, mom, how much the animal must have suffered. Mother turns around, how dare you talk about your father like this? Dictionaries are different.

Better not believe Vedanta before you experience its truths. Otherwise you will cause confusion for yourself and others. This is true of many preachers who have not experienced the truth. It's not your truth till you experience it. It's only the truth of the sages who had experienced it.

Can there be an organized method to reach the mindless state? How can mind go beyond the mind?

When water is at room temperature you can not imagine it becoming steam. To evaporate water you need fire, you need energy. Patanjali infuses energy into the mind to change its state. When the movement of mind stops, it becomes atman, it turns divine. Mind when it stops can not bind you, only till it has thoughts it can hold you. The deeper you go into the mind, what you think of as qualities of the mind, they disappear. The oscillations stop. Mind is no longer is confusion. It will become a guide, a teacher and will lead you to a no mind state. Instead of moving you away from enlightenment, it will pull you inside. Mind exists in its present form because it does not know that there is bliss in the no mind state. Once it knows, it wants you to stay there, as it is so blissful. Mind is a wonderful servant. It will take you wherever it thinks the truth lies. Once it has a glimpse of the blissful state it won't let it go, and will always take you back there.

Patanjali talks about this. How can one dream take you into another dream, or even a dreamless state? He also gives the answer: if you dream of a lion in your dream, you will wake up and come out of that dream.