Janmashtami's Most Life-Changing Story – NEVER Worry, Krishna Is in Control by Swami Mukundanand

Janmashtami's Most Life-Changing Story – NEVER Worry, Krishna Is in Control by Swami Mukundanand

https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY 

Full Text: 1  All the scriptures ask us to surrender to God. Why should we surrender and what does it mean? Surrender happens when we repose all our trust and faith in the grace of God. When we realize no matter how much wealth we may possess, it cannot always protect us.  In fact, Lakshmi is Chanchal, here today, gone tomorrow. Our health can also fail us. Our reliable friends and relatives could turn against us in future. Our high posts could be snatched away from us. Then we realize our real protector through thick and thin is the supreme divine personality and him alone.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=1  2  During the Mahabharat on the last and 18th day of the battle, Sri Krishna said to Arjun, "Today at the end, you get off the chariot first and stand a distance away." Arjun did not understand the reason behind Shri Krishna's instruction but obeyed blindly.  When he stood apart, Shri Krishna then stepped off the chariot and immediately it crumbled and then exploded. Arjun asked Sri Krishna what happened. He said your chariot could not have withstood the divine weapons of Karan and Drona, Bhishma etc. I was holding it in place by my power. And that is why when I left it crumbled.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=80  3  So when we realize that my crutches are fallible and choose to develop complete and absolute faith, my real ashray or protector is God. Narad ji expresses that as “anya ashray tyaga” and that brings about the spirit of surrender. What comes in the way of surrender is this big enemy inside, the ego which informs us God may be great but I am also something.   https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=142  4  Consider the example of Barbarik. He was the son of Ghatotkach who was the son of Bhim and Hidimba. So Barbarik was the grandson of Bhimsen. When the battle of Mahabharat was about to begin, Barbarik was also approaching to participate.  Shri Krishna realized this warrior is so powerful he has in his capacity the ability to overturn the outcome of the battle. So he met Barbarik on the way and said where are you going? Barbarik said to participate in the forthcoming battle.  Shri Krishna asked him, "What are your abilities? Give me a demonstration." Barbarik in his quiver used to have three arrows. He said, "These three arrows is all my arsenal. The first marks out whatever I wish to kill. The second marks out what I wish not to kill. And the third completes the task. Shri Krishna said, "Show me."  Barbarik released them. Now the arrow first one went and marked all the leaves of the nearby tree. Shri Krishna had put one leaf under his foot as a test. The arrow started hovering over Shri Krishna's foot and then Sri Krishna realized his power. He released the leaf. The second arrow came back without touching any and the third arrow pierced all the leaves and fell at the feet of Shri Krishna.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=187  5  Sri Krishna was impressed by Barbarik's prowess and asked him on which side are you going to fight. Barbarik said I received the instruction from my mother to always take the side of the weaker army.  In this case the Pandavas have only seven Akshohini divisions while the Kauravas have 11. Sri Krishna said suppose you fight from the side of the Pandavas you will then kill everybody in the Kaurav army but Bhishma will remain unscathed because he has the “swetcha mrityu varadan” ,i.e., death only when he wishes.  In that case the Kaurav army will then later become the weaker one and you will side it and start killing the Pandavas. This is very dangerous. He then said to Barbarik will you offer me a gift. Barbarik said Shyam Sundar whatever you ask. Shri Krishna said give me your head. Barbarik said without question but you also offer me something. Sri Krishna said what?  He said I wish to have the opportunity to observe your glory manifest in the forth coming Mahabharat war. Shri Krishna said so be it. Barbarik took a sword chopped his head off and offered it to Shri Krishna. Shri Krishna took his head and placed it in the sky so that Barbarik could observe the entire battle.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=316  6  After 18 days when the Pandavas finally Won, once a discussion began on whose contribution was the maximum in the Pandav victory. There were different claims. Sri Krishna said, "We have a judge up in the skies." So he brought Barbarik's head down and asked him the same question. Barbarik's response was classic.  He said, "Sri Krishna, although I found a lot of people fighting in the war, I could see very clearly it was your divine disc, the Sudarshan Chakra moving around all over the battlefield and effecting the results.  Oh, I could see only your glory manifest everywhere in this war. The Pandavas then questioned Sri Krishna. Why did he ask for such a terrible gift the head of their grandson Barbarik.  Sri Krishna then revealed that in his past life Barbarik was a yaksh and at a time when the evil forces had increased tremendously the devatas had approached Vishnu for protection.  Vishnu had said he would soon descend on the earth as an avatar and annihilate the miscreants. However, the Yaksh with pride had said, "There is no need. I can do this myself. I am so powerful."  The arrogance of the Yaksh had incensed Brahma who then cursed him that when Vishnu descends before annihilating the miscreants, he will first of all kill you. Sri Krishna said I had to fulfill the words of Brahma. What is the learning from here?   https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=434  7  The mistake of the Yaksh was his arrogance that prevented him from accepting the greatness of God. And later on when he came again as Barbarik, his glory lay in his complete and absolute alignment of his will with the will of God.  That is the prime symptom of surrender. Unite your will with the will of God. When we surrender, we accept that all we have belongs to him. We give up the sense of proprietorship and desire to use our possessions for the happiness of God.  Then the sava behav develops. By doing sava, we put our learning into practice. It helps us realize that devotion is to be done for the happiness of God.  Through service, we grow in the spirit of surrender and selflessness. Sava also prepares us for the divine service of God in His nithya leela, his divine Abode. Seva is thus the very life of devotion, surrender and spirituality. In fact, it is the original nature of the soul.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=569  8  The Chaitanya Charitamrta states. “The eternal constitutional position of the soul is by nature the servant of God”. So to progress in surrender, learn to use your possessions in a manner that pleases God.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=679  9   Take inspiration from this little girl who had accompanied her mother to the mall. And while they were checking out, the girl saw an artificial pearls necklace. Its shine and splendor attracted the little child and she begged her mommy to have it. The price tag on it was 250 rupees. The mother said, "My child, you will have to purchase it with your money."  So the girl went home, checked her piggy bank, did a little chore at home for which she earned a little bit from her mother, requested her grandmother for a little more, and finally put together the price to purchase the necklace. When she got it, she felt she was on top of the world. Papa returned and she proudly showed her possession to her father.  The next day while papa was putting her daughter to bed, it was his habit to tell her a lullaby story. At the end of it, he said, "Beti, do you love me?" "Yes, Baba. Are you sure you love me?" "Yes, papa.  Will you give me something if I ask for it?" Definitely, Papa. In that case, give me your pearl necklace. Oh, no. Papa, ask for anything else. The teddy bear, the toy train. Don't ask for this necklace. It's all right, Beti. You don't love me. And he went off.  The next night he came. His daughter was sitting cross-legged on her bed with tears in her eyes. And she said, "Papa, I've got something to give you." He put his hand forth. She placed the necklace in it.  The father pocketed it and from his other pocket, he took out a real pearl necklace worth 25,000 rupees and placed it on her. The papa had no intention to impoverish his daughter, but he needed her to learn to surrender before he could enrich her with gifts.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=708  10  Likewise, our eternal father is full of divine knowledge, divine love and divine bliss and wishes to enrich us with these divine presents. But He needs to know whether we are surrendered.  And we will have to express that by learning to sacrifice and serve him with what we possess.  https://youtu.be/eHK5xmsITsY&t=864

Standby link (in case youtube link does not work) Janmashtami's Most Life-Changing Story – NEVER Worry, Krishna Is in Control Swami Mukundananda.mp4

भगवद्गीता की महिमा | Dr. Vrindavan Chandra Das

0:00 तो ध्यान रखिएगा जीवन के अंदर जिस चीज से 0:02 attachment होगी वहीं weak हो जाओगे भगवत 0:06 गीता का पहला अध्याय में यह बताया गया 0:09 विषाद योग भी कहते हैं पहले अध्याय को 0:11 विषाद का मतलब दुख अर्जुन जबरदस्त दुख में 0:15 पड़ गया इतनी बुरी हालत हो गई कि depression  0:17 आ गया उसको उनको डिप्रेशन आ गया डिप्रेशन 0:20 कैसे पता लगता है जब आदमी में डिप्रेशन 0:21 आता है ना प्रभु जी वह एकदम energy less हो 0:25 जाता है उसमें energy नहीं होती उठा 0:28 नहीं जाता उससे ये हो गया था अर्जुन का 0:31 हाल हाथ से गांडीव फिसल गया एनर्जी खत्म 0:37 डिप्रेशन में आ गया था क्योंकि अटैचमेंट 0:40 के कारण उसकी strength जो थी वह सारी 0:43 जिससे भी अटैचमेंट होगी ना व आपकी 0:45 स्ट्रेंथ ले जाएगा सब यह ध्यान रखना जिससे 0:49 भी अटैचमेंट होगी वह आपके स्ट्रेंथ को 0:51 drain कर देगा आप उस area के अंदर weak हो 0:57 जाओगे चाहे वो पैसा हो व्यक्ति हो कोई भी 1:00 हो उसमें एक डर पैदा कर देगा आपके अंदर और 1:03 डिप्रेशन क्या है एक डर है जबरदस्त और वही 1:06 डिप्रेशन आगे चलकर suicide बनता है 1:08 आत्महत्या बनता है 1:12 क्योंकि मैं 1:13 एक डॉक्टर से बात कर रहा था मुझे लगता है 1:16 वो मुझे उन डॉक्टर से अभी मेरे को नाम याद 1:19 नहीं आ 1:20 रहा मुझे राजन प्रभु ने भेजा था उसके पास 1:22 मुझे कुछ तबीयत थोड़ी गड़बड़ हो रही थी तो 1:24 मैं उनसे बात करते हुए पूछा मैंने कहा how do you define tension in medical terms 1:26 अरे प्रभु जी क्या जवाब 1:34 दिया व जवाब आज मैं पूरे world में quote  1:37 करता हूं क्या जवाब दिया जो अंग्रेजी 1:40 जानते उनको दो मिनट समझ में आ जाएगा जो 1:41 नहीं जानते उनको समझाने की कोशिश करूंगा 1:44 fear of the abstract  1:46 जो 1:49 अभी हुआ नहीं उसका 1:51 डर, tension का मतलब नहीं जो  1:54 हो गया, दर्द जो हो गया वो टेंशन में नहीं आता 1:59 वो दुख की श्रेणी में आता 2:01 है  2:04 टेंशन का मतलब है जो हुआ नहीं क्या 2:06 पता और ज्यादातर 99 पर लोग nagative होते 2:10 हैं क्योंकि उनके आसपास बचपन से उसको 2:13 सिखाया जाता है अगर ऐसा नहीं करेगा तो 2:15 तेरे साथ ऐसा हो जाएगा उसको डर पैदा करा 2:18 जाता है बचपन 2:19 से हमारे generation में एक चीज अच्छी थी 2:22 हमारे माता-पिता ने हमसे कभी नहीं कहा तू 2:23 ये नहीं कर पाएगा तू क्या करेगा जिंदगी 2:26 में मैं तो तीन बार failure हूं 11वीं का 2:31 आज नोबल प्राइज winner के साथ बैठ के भी 2:33 चैलेंज करता हूं बात कर 2:36 मुझसे किस बल पे Gita के बल पे मैं थोड़ी 2:41 हूं कुछ ताली बजा दी हा जी ये ताली मेरे 2:45 लिए नहीं है भगवत गीता के लिए है मैं इस भ्रम 2:48 में नहीं रहता ध्यान रखिएगा यह मेरा भ्रम 2:51 होगा अगर मैं सोचूं कि ये knowledge तो 2:54 मेरे को मेरे गुरु महाराज ने दी है श्रीला  2:55 प्रभुपाद जी ने दी है मेरा इसमें क्या है ? 2:57 आज ये माइक जो है उछलने लगे 3:00 वाह वाह मैं क्या लेक्चर दे रहा हूं ये  3:02 बेवकूफी नहीं है  ? 3:08 तो यह भगवत गीता का ज्ञान है प्रभु जी 3:11 जब मेरे पास कभी कोई बच्चा आता है बच्चों 3:14 ऐसा मत करना तुम लोग मैं थोड़ा सा अलग 3:17 किस्म का व्यक्ति 3:18 हूं जो बच्चा आता है तो क्या 3:21 बोलते हैं पढ़ नहीं रहा तो मैं क्या बोलता 3:23 हूं मेरे जैसा 3:25 बनेगा अरे भाई एक रास्ता थोड़ी है आप लोग 3:29 बुजुर्ग बैठे हुए हैं वो जानते हैं इस बात 3:31 को जब हमारे स्कूल में टीचर कहता था 3:33 अरे कौन सा कुंभ का मेला है जो एक बार 3:36 आएगा 12 साल बाद आएगा अरे हर साल आएगा और 3:40 यह मेरे को फादर कहते थे failures are the pillar of success 3:45 उस टाइम नहीं समझ आता था आप सोचते 3:47 थे failure है इसलिए successful 3:50 होंगे तो भगवत गीता यहां से शुरू होती है 3:53 जब वो टेंशन में आते हैं टेंशन के बाद 3:54 डिप्रेशन में आते हैं डिप्रेशन के बाद 3:56 सुसाइड के लिए तैयार हो जाते हैं कि मेरे 3:57 को निहत्था भी मार जाएंगे मरने को तैयार 3:59 हूं 4:00 ये सुसाइड के लेवल पर आ गए वहीं से भगवत 4:03 गीता प्रारंभ होती है जब अर्जुन को उसने 4:05 सुसाइड नहीं किया जो मैं सबको एडवाइस करता 4:08 हूं टेंशन में आ गए डिप्रेशन में आ गए 4:11 सुसाइड के लिए आज मैं कुछ दिन पहले मैं 4:13 गुड़गांव गया हुआ था एक वकील है हाई कोर्ट 4:16 के आज से तीन साल पहले वे मुझसे गुड़गांव में  4:19 मिले थे suicide के लेवल पर आ गए थे सुसाइड 4:22 करना चाहते थे आज 4:24 उनके बच्चा हुआ था इसलिए मुझे 4:27 बुलाया first marriage फेल हो गई थी 4:30 सुसाइड करने के लिए तैयार हो 4:33 गए सेकंड मैरिज हुई बच्चा 4:36 हुआ मुझसे बोलने लगे आप ही के कारण आज मैं 4:39 जिंदा हूं मैंने कहा मेरे कारण नहीं Gita knowledge 4:41 के कारण 4:43 यह भगवत गीता के कारण तुम जिंदा 4:48 हो अभी प्रभु जी दो दिन पहले मैं जब निकल 4:53 रहा था गोवर्धन से  4:56 fog  4:58 था बहुत जबरदस्त उस व्यक्ति ने sincere  5:00 इच्छा करी होगी तो मंदिर पहुंचा आश्रम में 5:03 वह झारखंड से थे उनका अपना 5:06 मोटर पार्ट्स का बिजनेस था मेरे पास आते 5:09 हैं अवतारी प्रभु को कहा कि हम गुरु जी से 5:12 पाच मिनट के लिए मिलवा दो मैं कल जा रहा 5:14 हूं गुरु जी तो वापस नहीं आएंगे जो मैं  5:17 उससे मिला हूं प्रभु जी उस आदमी ने बताऊं क्या 5:19 कहा मुझे अभी हमारे पास समय नहीं तो उसका 5:21 मैं वीडियो दिखा देता उन्होंने कहा प्रभु 5:24 गुरुजी 15 साल तक मैं सुबह मंजन करने के बाद 5:27 शराब शुरू करता था और रात को कभी शराब 5:29 नहीं खत्म करता था मेरी रात कब होती थी 5:31 मुझे मालूम नहीं मैं 15 साल तक लगातार 5:34 शराब पीता था सुबह मंजन करने के बाद शुरू 5:37 हो जाती थी मेरी शराब उसने कहा जैसे ही 5:38 मैंने ये 13 घंटे का आपका Gita course सुना मैं आज 5:41 देखो आपके सामने खड़ा हूं शराब क्या 5:43 non veg क्या प्याज लहसुन सब छूट गया है और 5:46 16 माला जपता 5:51 हूं कितने cases चाहिएं 5:53 आपको मैं भी आप में से उनमें से हूं जब 5:56 पहली बार पहुंचा था Iskcon तो मुझसे पूछा था 5:59 अध्यात्म में interest है ? मैंने कहा मेरे 6:01 questions के answers में interest है आई 6:03 I want to know why this creation is there 6:06 क्रिएशन है क्यों और मैं मृत्यु पर 6:09 जीरो नहीं बनना 6:10 चाहता आज तक कोई पैदा ही नहीं हुआ जो जीरो 6:13 नहीं बनता हो अभी chartered accountants  6:16 मिले थे मुझे कोई मैंने कहा यार तुम लोगों 6:17 को बताते नहीं अपने लोगों को bankrupt  6:19 होगा तू तेरा दिवालिया 6:22 निकलेगा आज तक कोई पैदा नहीं हुआ जिसका 6:25 दिवालिया ना निकला हो मैंने कहा मैं 6:26 दिवालिया नहीं निकालना चाहता मेरे को बता 6:28 तरीका क्या है 6:30 मेरा यह question है उसने कहा इसका answer तो 6:32 अध्यात्म में 6:36 है

क्या कोई भी भगवान बन सकता है? Dr. Vrindavan Chandra Das

क्या कोई भी भगवान बन सकता है? Dr. Vrindavan Chandra Das

https://youtu.be/5la3CDUUCys

Transcript 0:00 भगवान गीता में कह रहें हैं "मेरा परम वचन जो है वो मैं बता रहा हूं अपने 0:02 हित के लिए सुन" और उसका अगला श्लोक है यह 0:05 श्लोक है 64 वां 18 अध्याय का और 65 में 0:08 श्लोक में भगवान स्पष्ट रूप में कहते हैं Gita Shloka 18.65 “Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend”. https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/18/65/ 0:10 मन्मना भव मद्भ‍क्तो   0:14 “मेरे भक्त बन जाओ” लोग भगवान बनना 0:17 चाहते हैं आज मैं पढ़ रहा था मेरे गुरु 0:19 गुरुदेव प्रभुपाद कह रहे हैं मोदी प्रभु 0:22 सुनोगे ना मैं पढ़कर सुना दूं आपके पैर के 0:24 नीचे जमीन खिसक जाए बोलते I will kick those people on their face 0:30 जो भगवान बनना चाहता है बेवकूफ है क्योंकि 0:33 भगवान बना नहीं जाता भगवान कोई post नहीं 0:36 है आप दास थे दास हो दास रहोगे सेवा करते 0:40 थे सेवा करते हो और सेवा करते रहोगे आज 0:44 बताओ मुझे एक व्यक्ति कौन भगवान बना है जो 0:48 यह claim करते हैं बड़े-बड़े कोई भगवान 0:51 नहीं बना प्रभु जी आज तक परंतु दास मैं  0:54 आपको सब दिखा दूंगा, भगवान को 0:57 मानते नहीं दास कैसे हो ? अरे चाहे politician  1:00 हो या IAS हो या businessman हो सब दास हैं  1:03 सब service कर रहे हैं सब सेवा कर रहे हैं 1:07 लो जी हम तो दिखा रहे हैं, आप दिखाओ एक 1:09 भगवान को जो भगवान बन गया हो जो नहीं 1:11 जी मरने के बाद बनेंगे post dated cheque ? 1:14 हमारे गुरु महाराज कहते थे post dated cheque 1:16 जिसमें account में पैसे नहीं है मैं एक 1:19 कदम और बोलता हूं अरे उसने वो post dated cheque 1:21 दिया जो बैंक ही नहीं है जिसका बैंक ही 1:25 नहीं है भाई उसका cheque दे दिया 1:27 हमें, तो पहला दिमाग से हटा दीजिएगा 1:30 भगवत गीता में clear है एकदम भगवान उवाच: 1:34 अर्जुन को कहीं नहीं कहा गया 1:36 भगवान, अर्जुन ने कहीं माना भी नहीं, दसवें  1:40 अध्याय में स्पष्ट रूप में कहा है ये हमारा 1:43 सबसे बड़ा भ्रम है कि हम भगवान 1:46 बनेंगे भगवान बना नहीं जाता भगवान था 1:50 भगवान है और भगवान रहेंगे यह गलत फहमी मत 1:54 रहना पहली 1:56 चीज भगवान ने भी कहा जो मेरी भक्ति करता 1:59 है वही मेरा जो भक्ति कर सकता है वही परम 2:02 है वही मेरा परम रहस्य है और इसी बात को 2:06 भगवान ने यह भी सातवें अध्याय में कह 2:08 दिया  Gita Shloka 7.19 बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान्मां प्रपद्यते  “After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare”.  https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/7/19/ 2:10 जो 2:14 व्यक्ति ज्ञान में आता है वह मेरी शरण में 2:16 आता है किसका वाक्य है ये भगवान श्री कृष्ण 2:19 कह रहे हैं, भगवत गीता में मेरे को कहीं 2:21 भी नहीं दिखा, आज तक नहीं दिखा, ना भागवत में 2:24 दिखा मुझे, कि तू भगवान बन 2:27 जाएगा, कैसे बन जाएगा ? ये सोच भी कैसे आती है ? 2:31 कोई नहीं बना भगवान भगवान थे हैं और 2:34 रहेंगे यह भगवत गीता का पहली चीज है 2:37 प्रभुपाद जी ने अपने introduction के अंदर 2:39 शुरू किया भगवत गीता उन्होने कहा 2:41 पहली चीज ध्यान रखना अगर यह नहीं मानते तो 2:44 भगवत गीता मत पढ़ो पहले इस बात को 2:48 Theoretical ही मानों, practical ना भी मानो 2:51 इससे क्या होगा आप author के अंदर या speaker के 2:55 अंदर doubt नहीं करेंगे अगर आप यहां बैठे 2:58 हुए हैं और मुझ पर doubt  कर रहे हो तो आप 3:00 एक पैसे की गिनती नहीं होगी, आपको फायदा 3:03 नहीं होगा 3:05 यह मेरा काम है कि मैं 3:07 आपको सत्य बताऊं और आपका काम है उस सत्य 3:11 को check भी करो, doubt मत करो check  3:15 करो check करने में और doubt करने में फर्क 3:17 होता है शंका करने में और उसको check करने 3:19 में फर्क होता है मुझे आप प्रभुपाद जी की 3:22 सबसे अच्छी बात यही लगी थी उन्होंने मुझसे 3:24 कहा था मुझे शिष्य नहीं चाहिए जो कि अंध 3:27 विश्वास करते हैं मुझे शिष्य चाहिए जो की 3:29 पहले 3:30 जाने और फिर शरणागत हो is this not intelligence? 3:35 यह क्या हमारी बुद्धिमता 3:38 की निशानी नहीं है हम कहां कह रहें हैं आप 3:40 बुद्धि बंद करके आइए बिल्कुल नहीं कह रहे

You’ll Never Control Your Mind Without This – Shree Krishna’s Forgotten Truth Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6 Sloka 10-12 | Swami Mukundananda

You’ll Never Control Your Mind Without This – Shree Krishna’s Forgotten Truth Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6 Sloka 10-12 | Swami Mukundananda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8  1   Sri Krishna is talking about meditation to Arjun. He explained that whether you are karma sanyasi or a karm yogi, it's not the external renunciation but the state of the mind which is most important.  So that mind Sri Krishna said, can be your enemy, it can be your friend. He said to purify the mind you engage in meditation. He is describing further about meditation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=0  2   Bhagavat Gita chapter 6 Dhyan Yog the Yoga of meditation “He must hold the body, neck and head firmly in a straight line and gaze at the tip of the nose, without allowing the eyes to wander.  Thus with a serene, fearless and unwavering mind and staunch in the vow of celibacy, the vigilant yogi should meditate on me having me alone as the supreme goal”.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=34  3   Supposing all day long you see movies and at the end of it you say okay now let me sit for meditation, will you succeed in meditating ? So it is not just what you are doing during that meditation period but what you do through the day which will affect the quality of your meditation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=128  4   That is why in the Yog darshan, Maharshi Patanjali says, yam,niyam, asan, pranayama, pratyahar So what is pratyahar? The ahaar of the senses.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=165  5   The senses of ours. The Kathopnishad says that the creator Brahma made these senses outwardly oriented, so the senses by themselves will not run inside, they will run outside only. Now we think of aahar only as what we eat. But from the spiritual viewpoint all the senses are getting aahar.  So if we want to move ahead in Yog, withdraw those senses like the turtle, when it spots a danger what does it do, it withdraws its arms and leg and even the head, it all just becomes a shell and then it waits and hears and when the it seems it is safe, it'll poke its head out. It has learned the art of withdrawing its hands and feet.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=185  6   Similarly the expert meditator has to be adept at the art of withdrawing the senses. That is the pratyahara of these senses.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=257  7   Now neurology tells us that there is a chemical in the brain called dopamine, and that dopamine is the chemical that causes confusion. All the wrong decisions we take is because of dopamine.  The dopamine always promises us there is happiness there but there is never any fulfillment, only hope. So dopamine gets stimulated and in this modern day environment there is constant stimulation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=275  8   So the mind, the brain has gotten addicted to stimulation. When was the last time you ever got bored? At least never since the advent of iPhone. Because from all sides there's entertainment pouring in, little tit bits of interesting information.  You can always switch from the different platforms, from the different instant messaging Systems, you can always check the email, So the brain gets stimulation. Will I get some interesting tit bit of information there?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=318  9   That is why nowadays intermittent fasting has become common, right? Give your digestive system a little break, 16 hours of break once in a while and it will improve your digestion. So when you eat, you'll actually be able to eat more. You'll make up for that fast.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=367  10   So likewise now people are realizing that you need a dopamine detox, why? Because all the stimulation from all sides and what is happening to the brain is constant dopamine, dopamine, dopamine.  And the problem is the brain is getting desensitized, it needs more and more and more dopamine. So if you do a dopamine detox, slowly the brain will come back to normal. That is the pratyahar. Pratyahar means the withdrawal of the senses from the world. Like the turtle you take them in.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=397  11   And then Sri Krishna also gives some external things. So He says that you sit alert, in the Brahma sutra there are four sutras in regard to how to meditate. So Vyas has said there sit down and meditate.  Now you say Guru ji can I lie down and meditate? Guruji says if you are really expert you can but if you are little less expert don't do it otherwise you will fall asleep in a short while, that is why it is said while meditating don't even take a “teka” (a cushion as a support for back), don't say, okay I'll meditate, let me also rest my back and meditate why this mind is so lazy, it's looking for opportunities to switch off.  Now it doesn't look for such opportunities when you are eating when you are getting the aahar for your senses. Why? Because the mind gets the material rasa. It is a material mind. It gets the material rasa. The mind says this is all right.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=448  12   But when you take the mind in the spiritual realm, now the mind is in the reverse area. It's a material mind in the spiritual realm. Well, it is natural. The mind says this is not so interesting.  Unless you've got a whole lot of prem (love) then of course the mind finds that interesting then the world is uninteresting. But until you reach that level of surety, don't trust the mind.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=538  13   That is why sit alert. So the yoga darshan says, sit and do your meditation, later on you can walk along and also do your meditation. That is also possible. But initially just sit down.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=570  14   So “samam kaya-shiro-grivam” Shri Krishna says “Sit Erect”, do not sit tilted. and then He says “dharayann achalam sthirah” So you focus, keep your eyes not fully open, not fully closed. What is the sense of that?  See Shri Krishna is just being practical. These eyes are the windows to the world, so if you keep the eyes open, you will get distracted, and if you keep the eyes fully closed you may fall asleep, so Shri Krishna is being realistic.  He says you keep them half open and half closed. And further he says focus, don't let the world get in through the eyes, so keep the eyes focussed on the tip of the nose. And then you engage in meditation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=592  15   So He has earlier explained the kind of aasan, it need not be too high, not too low. Maharshi Patanjali has said "Sthiram, sukham, asanam." He says when you sit for meditation these three things should be there.  Firstly you should be able to sit sukhmay, comfortably. If you are forcing yourself into padmasan and it's uncomfortable for you then naturally your mind will meditate on the pain in the legs and you'll not be able to think of your meditable object. So sukham (comfortably), and asam means sit down and sthiram, sit stationary.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=664  16   So likewise Sri Krishna also says in whichever posture you are able to sit stationary you sit down, focus your eyes, control your senses, and now meditate, on what? So he has said, “Meditate on Me”.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=725  17   Now you read varieties of commentaries on the Bhagavad-Gita, people have the art. Sri Krishna is saying straight, “Meditate on Me”. but somebody says He is telling you to meditate on the soul within,  somebody says He is telling you to meditate on your lifeairs, some master yogis say that there is no Mahabharat, it is only your body but we will learn from Sri Krishna in the next verse, He will clarify it even further.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEiTmThmYo8&t=751 

Standby link (in case youtube link does not work) You’ll Never Control Your Mind Without This – Shree Krishna’s Forgotten Truth Swami Mukundananda.mp4

Who Am I ? Explained by Swami Mukundananda

 Who Am I ? Explained by Swami Mukundananda

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA  

Full Text  1  we always have this perception of the I, I am happy, I am sad, I am hungry, I am Full, I am feeling hot, I'm feeling cold, the experience of I always remains but what is this I, that is the question from which our spiritual quest begins  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=6   2  on the Temple of Apollo, at Delpha in Athens, are inscribed the Greek words “Know Thyself”, in the Gita Shri Krishna says to know the difference between the field of activities and the knower of that field of activities is the beginning of knowledge  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=42  3  it is said that the wise old man of Greece, Socrates was fond of asking people to think who are they? There is an anecdote about him that lost in deep thought he was walking through the marketplace when he collided into a policeman,  the policeman got agitated and said, you careless fellow, you're not even looking where you're walking, “who are you”, Socrates responded I've been pondering over that question for the last 40 years, if you get to know, “who I am”, please inform me  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=76  4  so this question is important, science has its take upon it and the spiritual traditions of the world have their take upon it. Science does not accept the existence of a nonmaterial entity, the spiritual spark called the “soul” as the basis of life in the body, science says that this body consisting of matter is leading to consciousness (i.e., matter is creating consciousness)  but matter does not possess consciousness, science says when matter becomes more complex, then it creates consciousness within itself, that is why this bunch of chemicals within the bag of the body is what you are. The problem with this is that if we are a bunch of chemicals and consciousness is originating from chemicals, then how do you explain the phenomenon of death, death then becomes a chemical reaction, a reaction has taken place in the body which has dismissed consciousness from it,  however any chemical reaction is reversible, if sufficient conditions are provided to it and that is why if death is a mere chemical reaction all you need to do then is to reverse that reaction and bring the dead person back to life.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=122  5  there have been people who have had such faith in their scientific viewpoint that they believed in future, the science would bring dead people back to life, it is said of Walt Disney that his faith in science was such that he did not pass on his property to his children,  rather he wrote In his will that his body should be put in the deep freeze and maybe 300 years later when science evolves to that point that they can make dead people alive then again he will continue with his life, Walt Disney was in the deep dreeze but his children were pretty annoyed about it but because they were not able to access the billions of their father,  so one day people found that from the deep freeze, an awful stink was emanating, they inquired what had gone wrong, on opening it they found Walt Disney's body was stinking, somebody had pulled out the plug of the deep freeze, so that experiment could never be verified.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=241  6  However IF it is a fact that we are a bunch of chemicals and consciousness is created from it, to prove it, let us create life in the laboratory BUT that has never been done. You may say, swami ji, have you not heard of invitro fertilization ? yes but in that invitro fertilization, you are starting with life itself, the sperm and the ovum.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=326  7  Begin with mere chemicals and from chemicals create life, forget about creating a human being just create a mosquito, if you cannot create even the slightest, the lowest kinds of life in the laboratory, then what right do we have of saying that it is scientific & that we are a bunch of chemicals without any proof for it ?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=355  8  One Nobel Prize winner Albert Giorgi said, in my search for life, I ended up with electrons, protons and neutrons, somewhere along the journey consciousness slipped out of my hands, now in my old age, I am retracing my steps to find the basis of consciousness.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=386  9  the spiritual traditions in the world inform us that there is a spiritual spark within us, non-material which is the soul, the spirit, the atman that is the source of consciousness, now you may say that why can I not detect that spiritual spark in medical experiments and research ?  The reason is that since it is spiritual, it is beyond the perception of our material Instruments, like for example if an automobile engineer were to find out the source of motion in the car and go from the wheels backward,  he would say that the wheels are moving because of the axle rod, the axle rod is moving because of the pistons in the engine, the pistons are moving because of the accelerator, the ignition switch, the steering wheel, so this is the source of all the motion in the car, however there is a driver behind all these who operates them  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=416  10  similarly a doctor may say the body is functioning because of the heart, the kidneys, the liver, the pancreas, the gall bladder etc., but the spiritual spark is energizing them all and hence they are working, the moment the soul leaves the body, the heart kidneys liver pancreas gallbladder are all there but activity has ceased because the basis of life is no longer there  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=500  11  so the soul cannot be perceived by physical instruments, however the symptom of the Soul consciousness can be perceived, the soul is the basis of life, wherever you find life, whether it is the plants, the animals, the birds, it means there is the soul within them, without the soul this is all dead matter.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=534  12  Information regarding the soul is more completely and precisely presented in the Vedic scriptures, what is the size of the soul ? The soul is tiny, how tiny ? Mundak Upanishad states, take the tip of a hair, cut it into 100 parts,  take one of those parts and cut it further into 100 parts, that is impossible, nevertheless if you could do it, the size you would get is the size of the soul and this is also merely a literary expression because the soul is subtle.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=570  13  that tiny soul, how does it spread consciousness throughout the body ? The Brahma Sutra says the nature of the soul is like the nature of a source of light, there is a light on the ceiling, the light is 2 m away from me but its energy is reaching right here, the Brahma Sutra says in the same manner the soul is in the region of the heart and yet it is spreading consciousness throughout the body ;  that is why if you poke a thorn into your finger, you will experience the pain - what happened ? it's paining, that means the finger has life, how come when the soul is in the heart the life has spread all the way till the finger, that is the nature of the soul, it spreads its consciousness throughout the body  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=635  14  again one could ask that life is the quality of the soul, how come it was passed on to the body ? the answer is given again by Ved Vvas in the Brahma Sutra, he says for example there is fragrance in a flower but the flowers of the garden make the whole garden fragrant and when you enter a garden, you immediately perceive the fragrance, wow beautiful flowers, very aromatic in this garden,  similarly the soul like the flowers spreads its fragrance or its consciousness into the body and how come it got passed through to the entire body, again Ved Vvas makes a sutra in the Brahma sutras, the aphorisms, he says look at the property of chandan or sandalwood paste, to cool your body,  you do not need to apply sandalwood paste all over you, just apply it on the forehead and the property of sandalwood is that it cools the entire body, similarly the soul staying in one place makes this whole body conscious, that is why the Brahma Sutra says accept the existence of the soul, perceive your self as an eternal spiritual being  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=705  15  Swami Vivekanand said “Thou Art Souls Immortal, Spirits, Blessed, Free and Eternal, matter is your servant and not you the servant of matter”, the moment you get this realization of your real self, your personality becomes centered, people will talk about how to center themselves,  I respond it's the easiest of things, see yourself through shastra chakshu (eyes of shastras/scriptures) even though you may not as yet have had realization of your soul nature, see yourself through the eyes of the scriptures and the moment you bring this thought,  this piece of knowledge into your intellect that I am the Eternal Soul, I am not body, I am not matter, I am a part of the Eternal God, you will be centered and you will be focused upon He of whom your soul is a part, this is the knowledge of the Soul  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKV11cTs7hA&t=813  Standby link (in case youtube link does not work): Who Am I Explained by Swami Mukundananda.mp4