Swami Shivapadananda

Swami Shivapadananda on how to find happiness

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

559

[Pictured: The route the Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi used to walk from the Udbodhan House, when going to take her bath in the river Ganges]

   

It is a rare privilege indeed for one in this world to sit quietly and contemplate his life's journey on Earth. The questions we must ask are: 'Who are we? Whence have we come? What are our duties?'

Though we deal with many different subjects the most important question seems to be lost. That question is: 'Who is the sub-stratum of these things that we see and see not?' There is no doubt that all beings, from the tiniest worm to the highest angel, are trying to find happiness and spontaneously express this in their daily lives.

If I have a prescription it is logical that I should go to a chemist for the medicine and not to a vegetable market. Similarly, we are looking for this happiness; and our prescription is the scriptures. But we go looking for happiness in mundane things.

The scriptures say that anything that is finite must bring unhappiness; and anything that is infinite will give you that bliss, that happiness, that immortality, that we are knowingly or unknowingly looking for. But then it seems that we are not in a hurry. We do not realise that in finding That Thing we find everything.

In the scriptures, when the great bhaktas [devotees] were offered a boon, it is said that some asked their deities to cure their diseases, or for wealth, or name and fame. Only a rare few asked for bhakti and jnana [spiritual knowledge and wisdom]. Only when we have that bhakti and that jnana will we find the Eternal Thing.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on meditation focus

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

558

[Pictured: Shrine to the Holy Mother, Sri Sarada Devi, in her 1st floor room at the Udbodhan House in Kolkata, where Mother lived following the mahasamadhi of Sri Ramakrishna.]

If you touch Hanumanji, you will be a Ram bhakta [devotee].

Just go and do your sadhana [spiritual practice, meditation, japa]. Even without devotion, just keep repeating his name. The name itself will give you devotion. That is my experience of the name of God. So long as you keep recalling Him again and again, He will clear the path Himself.

Anahata [sound of the heart Chakra] is the same as AUM. The sound that the yogis hear in the heart is AUM.

You must concentrate on your Ishta Devata for two years; after that you will be established. Otherwise you will change from this to that

Devotee: What is the difference between repeating one, one, one, and Ramakrishna, Ramakrishna, Ramakrishna?

Swamiji: When we say 'Ramakrishna' we have a concept, a mental picture of Sri Ramakrishna. If you count one and see one, the concentrated mind will become quite calm. But we want to think of Sri Ramakrishna and to become Sri Ramakrishna. Just watch your thoughts. You are not the thoughts, you are separate from the thoughts. When you know you are not watching any more, then you know you are It [subject and object are one].

Sri Ramakrishna said, 'Weep, pray secretly in solitude. Thinking on me alone will do. Verily, verily I say unto you, whosoever thinks of me alone, inherits my wealth as a son inherits his father's wealth - but not in a Vedantic sense. Meditate, O my mind, on the Lord, who is Consciousness, rarefied and spotlessly pure.'

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on the damage of talking ill of others and the benefits of charity

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

557

[Pictured: The Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi's slippers in her room on the first floor of the Udbodhan House, where the Mother lived following the mahasamadhi (leaving of the body) of Sri Ramakrishna]

   

Do your sadhana [spiritual practice] and at the same time follow ethical and moral rules to keep the mind and senses under control.

On birthdays [of the saints and sages] you should fast and give charity to the poor. If you do not, it means that your heart is small and you will find that you do not progress. And because you always think that the money is short there will never be a lot. Always give charity on feast days and birthdays. You must do this.

Never talk ill of anyone. God shows us that we have evil in us when we pick on the evil of others. A clean mirror reflects perfectly, an unclean mirror gives an imperfect reflection. A mind that is clean reflects purity, not otherwise. It is a habit to pick on the shortcomings of others. Just a habit. By force praise them. Say something positive about them. This saves heartache later and leads to happiness and peace. Know that your [Ishta deva] Deity is seated in all you meet.

At meal times, when people bring me a lot of food, my mind straight away thinks about the poor people living in Kwa Mashu [an African township in Durban, South Africa] and that many people in Chatsworth [a predominantly Indian suburb of Durban] and Phoenix [also a predominantly Indian suburb of Durban] may not be looking at this quantity of food. Then I pray: 'God, I am blessed that You are sending it to me but give them some too.'

I am sure when you go from this Yoga Camp you will influence quite a few people to live a spiritual life. I am sure when you are with them you will not become like them, rather you will make them like yourself.

Mothers, encourage your purushas [husbands] to do more of the Lord's work and purushas encourage your shaktis [wives] to do more and more work for the sake of our gurus, Rishis [sages] and munis [holy men].

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda with detailed instructions for meditation

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

556

[Pictured: The Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi's room on the first floor of Udbodhan House, where the Mother lived following the mahasamadhi of Sri Ramakrishna]

To prepare yourself for meditation sit down calmly and start your sadhana [spiritual practice] with your guru's [spiritual preceptor's] name. Then think of Sri Ganesha [the aspect of God that removed obstacles] and Mother Saraswati [the goddess. Pray like this: 'O Ganesha, you are the guru, the manifestation of the whole universe.' Pray to them to bless the whole universe and feel the blessing penetrate your whole body. Feel that you are shining, that the whole universe is shining. Then pray again: 'May all love me and may I love all.'

The greatest mantra [sacred sound syllable or word] is the shantipaat [repetition of the peace mantras]. So say the shantipaat at the beginning of your sadhana [spiritual practice]. They are complete mantras and have the power to bring peace.

Now think of the deity [ishta deva] that you love so much. See your deity in the form of Light, of AUM. Pray for family unity and love. 'May all my relatives be happy. May I be pure.' Ask for your spiritual progress, for prosperity. Ask that there may be no emptiness anywhere, that you may have intelligent children and the highest wealth.

After this, sit with your japa mala and do japa [meditative repetition of the mantra or one of God's many names]. Now meditate on your Deity. See your Deity from foot to head. Begin with one mala [comprising 108 beads], after three months increase it to two malas and so on up to ten and then twenty malas. Only increase one mala at a time and do the same number of malas for three months before increasing.

Now put the mala to one side, sit calmly and meditate on the deity in your heart. If you prefer the formless aspect - neti, neti [not this, not this - the mental discrimination route] - sit calmly and do this. Or do not think of any form, just sit and the guru mantra will come up automatically. Start with five minutes of this and after three months increase it and so on.

As you get older this should be increased to three hours. In prayers you must follow your routine at approximately the same time every day: in the morning, at midday, in the evening and at midnight. (If you cannot do this then at least do it morning and evening.)

Always have a light [or oil, butter or ghee lamp] burning, clean water and agarbatti [incense or dhoop]. When your meditation is complete you may do arati [offering/waving of a lamp] if you like. Each one must do his or her sadhana and then do a general prayer together. When you leave the shrine, greet your deity in each other. Then the house will always be full of peace, prosperity, health and happiness. Give that happiness to all.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on the benefit of a home shrine

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 555

[Pictured: Devotees waiting for darshan of the Holy Mother's Sri Sarada Devi's picture in Udbodhan House, where the Holy Mother lived following the mahasamadhi of Sri Ramakrishna. Note the grille in front of the deity is still closed.]

   

Have even a small shrine in your homes. Without it you will be like a person without a heart, without life-blood; you will have built your life on materialism. God gives all. (If you cannot think that He is the boss, think that He is a shareholder.) Have a small place which you keep clean and pure. When you are angry do not enter there. First calm yourself, have only pure and holy thoughts, then you may go in there.

Keep a vase of flowers near the shrine as a symbol of light, as a symbol of AUM. Have a photo of the deity you love; but do not make an art gallery of your shrine because then you will not know which deity to worship and the mind will jump from one to the other.

You must have a Chosen Ideal [Ishta Deva]. Therefore have your Ideal's picture, a light and some agarbatti [incense] on the shrine. The place must be beautiful, it must be clean, so that the mind becomes naturally calm and makes holy thoughts manifest. You can worship according to the scriptures or as you like, out of love.

Why do you give prasad [sacramental food offering]? To purify the mind, to raise it to higher Consciousness.

The guidance of the guru is absolutely necessary to learn the technique to realise Brahman. 'I am full, may you also be full' - like that.

It is not enough to read and talk of the spiritual teacher, you must directly perceive the light within. It is not enough to get instructions from the guru, you must struggle incessantly. Some gurus give initiation through words, but it is beyond words. Others sit, talk, touch, look. Though they feel nothing at the time, the power is given by the illuminated teacher.

Always remember: God is your protector and guide. Who will touch you? He is Almighty. Repeat His name and all fear goes.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on asking God for the right things

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 554

[Pictured: Frame on the staircase of the Udbodhan House, featuring various photographs of the Holy Mother, Sri Sarada Devi, taken at the request of devotee Mrs. Sarah Bull]

   

Once, when his mother and sister were dying of starvation, Swami Vivekananda went to see Sri Ramakrishna. He asked Sri Ramakrishna to pray to the Divine Mother for him so that She would give him work and bless him. But Sri Ramakrishna said, 'No, I will not ask. Why do you want to test my faith? You yourself have to have faith. You must ask Her directly.'

So Swami Vivekananda went into the Kali temple at Dakshineswar. There he saw Mother Kali pulsating, living, breathing. He prostrated to Her and prayed for selfless love, devotion and knowledge. When he came out of the temple Sri Ramakrishna asked him if he had asked the Mother for work. He said, 'No.' So Master said, 'Go to the Temple again, and this time ask Her for work.' On seeing Her, Swami Vivekananda again asked for devotion and knowledge. And for the third time Sri Ramakrishna asked him to go back and ask Mother Kali for work to help his family. But all three times he could only ask for love, devotion and knowledge.

Swami Vivekananda's real nature was selfless, his nature was to love God, so when he went into the shrine it was his real nature which manifested. If you plant a mango seed it will produce mango flowers and mango fruit - not a plant that seems like something else.

After having been unable to ask for work for the third time Sri Ramakrishna said to him, 'I bless you that your family will not starve. They will have food, shelter and cloth to cover themselves.' And so it came to pass.

Pray for anybody, ask anything, but the highest thing to ask for is love and devotion. Start in the heart. God must be everywhere because He is Omnipotent [all powerful].

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on choosing a relationship with God

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 553

[Pictured: The first floor inside balcony of Udbodhan House, where Sri Sarada Devi the Holy Mother lived, following the mahasamadhi of Sri Ramakrishna]

   

There are different ways to worship the same God. If you give him a human form, you must treat Him as a human being though He is more mighty and more loving than you are. Because you have depicted God and understood Him in a human form, you must have a relationship with Him. You must relate to Him in a particular way. There are nine different relationships that you can have, though this was later condensed into six main ones.

These relationships are:

'I am the son and He is the Father,' as was Jesus' relationship with the Lord. [Or I am the child, She is the Mother]

'I am the mother and He is my Child,' as with Kausalya and Sri Rama.

'He is my Beloved, I love Him and He loves me,' as with Sri Radha and Sri Krishna.

'He is my Husband and I am his wife,' as with Mother Sita and Sri Rama.

'I am the servant and He is the Master,' as with Hanumanji and Sri Rama.

'He is my friend and I am his friend,' as with Arjuna and Sri Krishna.

So, you must choose one of these relationships and each day you have to make it stronger. Treat Him with sincerity, with love. Then, it is possible to pray for yourself and for others. Somebody asked me if one can pray for someone else. I said, 'Yes, it is possible. If He is a living God He must listen to your prayers and therefore you can pray for someone else.' Sri Ramakrishna prayed for the devotees, Sri Sarada Devi prayed for Her spiritual sons and Jesus the Christ prayed for the universe.

Ask God for anything you like and He will give it to you, provided you ask with faith and sincerity. If you rely on Him completely, if you surrender to Him, He must give it to you otherwise He is not a living God. But the highest thing to ask God for (and all the scriptures say this) is Divine Knowledge, knowledge of the Self, and Divine Love, to love Him completely and sincerely, this is bhakti [divine love or devotion]. Ask Him for liberation from small finite things, that you may leave all that, and love Him in all, because He is the Eternal Being.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

   

 

 

Swami Shivapadananda on conceptualising God

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 552

[Pictured: A seldom-seen beautiful picture of the Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, her body in old age, in samadhi]

   

Happiness cannot come to the home without unity. I am talking about a Hindu home where the devotees want to be happy, where the family wants to be happy. The whole universe is made out of unity. Though unity starts with a selfish purpose it later includes the family, the society, nature, the universe. The idea is to reach the universality of unity. But this only comes with practice.

We must set a goal. Saints and sages say that the goal is to know God in ordinary life - not out of the ordinary - in thought, word and deed. God is Omnipotent so know Him everywhere and in everything. Where to start? Let us start with ourselves. A person must never think he is a sinner. He must always think he is pure, that he is the creation of God and God cannot create something impure, something against his dharma [righteousness]. Slowly, after that, you see the body as the shrine, with the heart as the altar.

You may think of your deity as with form or without form. It is like a man posing for a photograph, he poses differently each time. Similarly, God's poses are many. He may sit like this or like that, He may dress up as Lord Shiva, as Hanumanji, or as Mother Lakshmi. He may dress as AUM or He may be natural, like Mother Kali, with no clothes. Nature cannot be dressed by something else. It must be dressed by nature. If God is nature, and is dressed up with his own nature, then He would be depicted with no clothes; nature is naked.

Think of God in any pose, in any form, provided that the idea of God expresses the highest positivity. Think of God as full of mercy, full of love, full of immortality. He is Infinite, and that which is Infinite brings peace and bliss. One must meditate on this aspect of God always. Remember, anything finite must end, and must ultimately bring unhappiness.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on self-effort and grace

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 551

[Pictured: Udbodhan House in its original state at the time it was inhabited by the Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi.]

   

Devotee: I can't remember even one spiritual saying.

Swamiji: That is because your mind is on worldly things.

Devotee: What to do, Swamiji, when the children have problems?

Swamiji: Do japa [meditative repetition of a mantra or one of God's many names]. That helps them more.

You cannot realise God through rites or sadhana [spiritual practice], only by His Grace.

Brahman [the indivisible One consciousness] is bliss, not 'full of bliss'. The space here [Swamiji points to himself] and the space there [points to someone else] is the same. Though the space in the pot seems different, it is one. For example, Jesus the Christ said, 'I and my Father [God] are One.' The 'I' makes a difference.

While meditating sit relaxed, then the mind dwells effortlessly on the object of meditation, or on the thought. I do this all the time.

If I see one sixteenth part of truth in you, that is what I will tell.

When you see everything in Him [God] and Him in everything, you don't see any differences, just One - You and You alone - then fearlessness comes and fear goes. If I see the slightest difference fear comes up.

We say: 'God is omnipresent,' but we see something else and fear comes. All this is consciousness, what is there to fear? Ignorance is the cause of fear. This is a stage we must go through - but we must transcend it. To know that the scripture is not all, we must realise what is in that scripture. The Eternal thing is indestructible.

You must rely on [the Divine] Mother and exert your own abilities. Then you will never fail in life. The guru [spiritual preceptor who is actually God] cannot do it for you but he can inspire you.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.

 

Swami Shivapadananda on living in the moment

SWAMI SHIVAPADANANDA

DAILY READINGS

From Mother Radha's recordings of Swamiji

Day 550

[Pictured: Front interior staircase of Udbodhan House leading to the first floor - the quarters of Sri Sarada Devi the Holy Mother and the room of Swami Saradananda.]

   

Whenever you meet and greet each other, do it as if it were the first time you are meeting that person.

When I look at the ashram [monastery, hermitage - even in modern days] boys and girls I always watch to see if they are chasing yesterday's thought. I want to see if they are fresh or stale. To the extent they still have yesterday's thought (or fear, or anger) with them, to that extent they are stale and need to be freshened up. To the extent they have forgotten yesterday and have realised today is a good day, to that extent they are spiritualised.

God bless. God speed.

Some people do not understand why I ask them to do certain things - to come here at certain times and so on. There is a meeting point of spirituality and love. Spirituality is jnana [divine knowledge] and when you practise it to the extent that it permeates your body, to that extent you gain power.

The first rule in spiritual life is obedience. You may not understand it but that does not matter. You must know that I will not give you poison.

Everyone that is seated here must have had some spiritual experience, or an experience which was above the senses. Otherwise what are we doing here? It is not for nothing that somehow our experiences have told us that there is a God. But we do not want to surrender to God, though I am afraid to use the word surrender. What do I mean by surrender? I sometimes pray to God to give me the meaning of surrender. If I say, 'God, take my surrender, I am giving You my power of attorney,' that too is not right because 'I' am still doing it. God has not yet taught me how to surrender.

1) Care should be taken by the reader to understand and take Swamiji's words in these postings, in context. Every teaching or instruction that he gave was specific to the people who were with Swamiji at the time.

2) Mouse-over the words highlighted in red in the posting for further explanation or links.

There are currently available, over 100 different CDs or DVDs with mp3 files, of Swamiji speaking. Please email timhoare@webmail.co.za to order. Click HERE for the second website on Swamiji's life and teachings.