How Far are We from Realisation?
Sri Chinmoy’s final talk of the Spring series on Yoga
held at the home of Miss Elma Winter in Brooklyn Heights, New York
Avidyaya Mrityum Tirtha, Vidyaya Amritam Snute: "By Ignorance we cross through Death, by knowledge we achieve Immortality." This is indeed a major realisation.
Realisation means the knowledge of God. Realisation means the revelation of God in a human body. Realisation means man is God himself.
Unfortunately man is not alone. He has desire and desire has tremendous power. Nevertheless, it fails to give man lasting joy and peace. Desire is finite. Desire is blind. It tries to bind man, who is already boundless by birthright. God's Grace, which acts through man for His full manifestation, is Infinite.
Realisation springs from self-conquest. It grows in its oneness with God. It fulfils itself in embracing the finite and the Infinite.
We are seekers of the Supreme. What we need is absolute realisation. With a little realisation we can, at most, act like a cat, half-dead. With absolute realisation we shall be able to threaten Ignorance like a roaring lion.
The moment I say "my body", I separate myself from the body. This body undergoes babyhood childhood, adolescence, maturity and old age. But the "I am" who is the real "I", remains changeless always. When I say that I have grown fat or thin, it is the body that has grown fat or thin, and not the inner "I am", which is eternal and immortal.
Realisation says that there are no such things as bondage and freedom, which we so often declare in our day-to-day lives. What actually exists is consciousness — consciousness on various levels and consciousness enjoying itself in its varied manifestation. So long as we think that we are living in the bondage of ignorance, we are at liberty to feel that we can dwell in freedom as well if we want to. If bondage makes us feel that the world is a field of suffering, then freedom can undoubtedly make us feel that the world is nothing but the blissful Consciousness of the Brahman. Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma: "All that is extended is Brahman."
In order to realise what realisation is, one has first to love one's inner self. The second step is to love the realisation itself. This is the love that awakens the soul. This is the love that illumines our consciousness. Love, and you will be loved. Realise, and you will be fulfilled.
Realisation is our inner lamp. If we keep the lamp burning, it will transmit to the world at large its radiant glow. We all, with no exception, have the power to self-realisation, or in other words, God-realisation. To disbelieve this truth is to be consciously ignorant of our divine heritage. To disbelieve this truth is to deceive ourselves mercilessly.
We realise the Truth not only when joy fills our minds, but when sorrow clouds our hearts, when death welcomes us into its tenebrous breast, when Immortality places our existence in Transformation's lap.
How far are we from realisation? We can know it by the degree of our surrender to God's Will. There is no other way to know it. Also we must know that every single day dawns with a new realisation. Life is a constant realisation to him whose inner eye is open.
Why do we want to realise God? We want to realise God because we consciously have made ourselves avenues through which the fruits of God-realisation can flow. Realisation is a divine lubricant. Our very body is a divine machine. Hence it needs oiling. Realisation does this most effectively.
Realisation can be achieved by God's Grace, the Guru's Grace and the seeker's aspiration. God's Grace is rain. The Guru's Grace is the seed. The seeker's aspiration is the act of cultivation. Lo, the bumper crop of realisation!
Published in AUM – Vol. 2, No. 4, 5, Nov. – 27 Dec. 1966
Sri Chinmoy reads from his writings during a meeting of the United Nations Meditation Group (later known as Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations) in New York.
Health
A lecture by Sri Chinmoy
at 9:00 a.m. at the National Health Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia
The National Health Institute: this very name is so inspiring, aspiring, illumining and fulfilling. Health is of paramount importance and the nation pays all attention to health. I am extremely happy and deeply honoured to be here to offer my dedicated service to this great Institute.
Man’s health
Is
God’s Wealth.Man’s health-perfection
Is
God’s Heart-Satisfaction.The body is the temple.
The soul is the shrine.The body is the dreamer.
The soul is the fulfiller.No health,
No journey forward,
Upward
And inward.Health-infirmity
Is
Death-proximity.The body fears;
Death nears.National Health Institute,
To your vision-light
I bow and bow.National health-smile is
Nation’s victory-adventure
Guaranteed.Health-perfection
Defies
Disease-intervention.Stark poverty
Is not the only cause
Of ill health.Health-attention-discipline-bankruptcy
Is the main cause
Of poor health.Health-imperfection
Is the order of the day.
Therefore, military-disease-army
Ruthlessly attacks and damages
The body-fort.Man’s body-perfection
Is God’s
Dream-Harvest-Satisfaction.Man’s body-perfection
Is God’s
New creation-inspiration,
New creation-aspiration
And new creation-manifestation.I pray to God,
Not for the body of a boxer,
Not for the body of a wrestler,
But for the body of a God-believer,
God-lover and God-server.I pray to God to bless me
With perfect body-fitness,
So that I will not be cowed down
By the buffets of disease-dragons.I pray to God to bless me
With a Divinity-Illumination-surcharged body,
So that I can manifest here on earth
God-Infinity’s Peace
And God-Immortality’s Bliss.Not body-comfort-indulgence,
But body-competence-effulgence,
Humanity's singular need.There is an Indian saying from the hoary past:
Nayamatma balahinena labhyaThe soul cannot be won
By the weakling.
The soul can be won only
By the brave.
[Sri Chinmoy invited the audience to join him as he sang one of his own compositions:]
Man’s health
Is God’s Wealth.
Man’s health-perfection
Is God’s Heart-Satisfaction.I wish to offer my prayerful and soulful gratitude to the authorities of the National Health Institute for having given me the golden opportunity to be of service to the soul, the heart and the life of this Institute.
I shall pray for the stupendous success and enormous progress of this great Health Institute, for the outer success and inner progress of this inspiring, aspiring and self-giving Health Institute.
Published in I Prayerfully Bow to the Soul of Russia
Listen to Sri Chinmoy’s lecture on ‘Health’.