(Below is a continuation of the post Intellectual vs. Emotional)
A Jnani (wise or knowledgeable one) is one whose intellect is sharp and profound. Such a person understands everything in depth (and not superficially).
A Jnani is always close to Nature and to God (Meaning: A wise person understands and acts in accordance with the laws of Nature and does not violate them).
So you can realize God through your feelings (of devotion and surrender), and also by following the path of knowledge (which helps righteous action and dispels ignorance).
You should follow the path that is in accordance with your nature, one that appeals to you. If you are someone who is driven more by feelings than by logic and intellect, then you should engage more in Satsang and Bhakti (devotion).
There is so much more than what we think we know, and there is so much that we still do not know. Just understanding this alone can take our life to greater heights of progress.
If you are driven more strongly by intellect and logic, then you will become restless if you sit in a Satsang for a long time. Then you would say, ‘Oh, stop all this Satsang and chanting. How many times will you say the same thing again and again? Why are you all singing such a long bhajan? Just calling out God’s name once is enough!’ (Laughter)
If you see two lovers, they keep writing each other’s names everywhere. They write, ‘I love you’, everywhere they can. And writing it just once is not enough. They write it ten times! They start filling pages and pages of books with the name of their beloved. They even etch the names of their beloved on the walls.
So they write the beloved’s name wherever they can. This is because a lover cannot stop by saying the beloved’s name just once. He is not content with that. So he keeps reciting the beloved’s name again and again. This is not the case for one driven by the intellect and logic.
Even music does not appeal to one driven by the intellect. They are uncomfortable with chanting the same name and same lines again and again. This is how they think. But when such a person (who is driven by the intellect) looks at the Creation, he gets so wonder struck by the magnanimity of the creation. The creation is so miraculous, so mysterious and so full of amazement.
The are new discoveries that happen every day and every moment, yet the more one discovers of this creation, the more one realizes that the secrets of the creation are far more deeper and mysterious than one can imagine. And this realization only increases the sense of wonder in a person, so much so that ultimately he experiences Yoga (union) through this sense of wonder, he becomes one with Nature.
This is why it is said, ‘Vismayo Yogah bhumika’ (The sense of wonder has a great role to play on the path of Yoga).
So, being in a state of wonder is an important step in Yoga. Why is this so? It is because there is so much more than what we think we know, and there is so much that we still do not know. Just understanding this alone can take us to greater heights of progress in our life.
This creation is vast, endless, and full of wonders; it has no end, it has no shores. Knowing this is being in a Gyaan Yajna.
A Jnani and a Vijnani (person with a scientific outlook) is always aware of this fact, so he is always close to God. He is always watchful in a state of wonder as Nature reveals its secrets.
The are new discoveries that happen every day and every moment, yet the more one discovers of this creation, the more one realizes that the secrets of the creation are far more deeper and mysterious than one can imagine.
There was a 27 km long artificial tunnel constructed in Geneva.
One scientist discovered the God particle (referring to the discovery of the Higgs-Boson particle) through his experiments in that tunnel. In the next month, I received an invitation to visit Geneva and meet the scientist.
What does ‘God Particle’ mean? It means that most fundamental and indivisible particle from which everything is made up of. That from which everything in creation is made of and which is the essence of everything – that is what is meant by the God Particle. So those scientists told me, ‘We have found God by discovering this particle, because everything is made up of this alone’.
So both a Jnani and a Vijnani (scientist) are close to God. They both contemplate upon God. Do not think that only a person who sits in a temple all day, and sings devotional songs and rings the temple bells is truly worshipping God. No, it is not so. Anyone who deeply believes in the mystery of the Creation, who is aware of its greatness and its diversity, and who surrenders to the power of the Creation – is truly engaged in Upasana (deep contemplation of God).
You will find that there as many different ways of worship, as there are people. All of them are the best, and you should respect and honor them all. This is what Lord Krishna is saying here.
See, God is only one. If you wish, you can see Him as one, or you can choose to worship Him in different forms and different ways too.
You can see Him in the plants, trees, animals, children, men and women. You can even see God in a donkey, or in a dog, or in the smallest of insects. You should honor and respect them all (for they are all diverse manifestations of one Divinity).
God is present everywhere and in everything. So you should honor and respect everybody.
There is saying, ‘Akeet Brahma paryate’, which means that the Brahman (the one supreme Consciousness) is manifest everywhere, right from the smallest insect to the vast Creation. So you should have total faith in it and respect it.
You too are made up of the same consciousness. Every particle of your body is made up of the Brahman. There is nothing in creation that is beyond it.
So there are three things you should always remember:
1. God is everywhere and so He is also present in me
2. Since He belongs to everybody, He also belongs to me, and
3. God is all-capable and can fulfill any lack that I may have
it is these negative forces that we have to oppose in the world, rather than opposing or fighting against a person or a group of people.
It is not that God existed sometime earlier in the past and now does not. No, not at all. You should remember that God is present everywhere and at all times. He is present right now, this every moment.
Just remind yourself of this and relax. This is called Faith.
Now what will you have to do for this? Will you have to sit and meditate for hours together? No, you have to do nothing for this. Just have total faith in this fact, this very moment! That’s it.
How much time does it take for you to become a lover? Do you have to practice a lot for it? Do you have to study it in some college, or get a certifying degree for that? Do you have to study (the scriptures) for many hours, or will you have to do very strenuous exercise for that?
What is it that you have to do to become a lover? You do not need to do anything. Just believe in God totally. That’s it. Just believe, ‘I am a true lover’.
What is the mantra for love? 'Everyone belongs to me, there is no one who is a stranger, who is not known to you'.
It is to know and firmly believe that there is no one other than God everywhere (seeing God everywhere means to be truly and deeply in love with God).
Now when will you follow this? Will you do this after 10-20 years? Will you do it after you grow old? I tell you, do it now! This very moment! Just take it for granted that ‘I am a lover (of God)'.
Being totally in love (with God), you see that there is no one who is a stranger. Everyone belongs to you. People from every country of the world, whether it be Pakistan, Nepal, India, Iran, Iraq, America; they all belong to you’.
When we consider everyone to belong to us, then other people too will not find it difficult to accept us as their own. They too will consider us as one of their own. Usually there is a seed of this thought present inside us somewhere that ‘So-and-so person is not my own. This person is separate, he does not belong to me', or 'That person is my enemy’.
Then the same feelings arise in them as well. So from our heart, we should not think of anyone as our enemy, or have such feelings towards them.
If you really want to have enemies, then you should consider corruption as your enemy. You should regard violence and anger as your enemies. All these deserve to be removed from the world.
Anger, violence, corruption, oppression and immoral practices need to be removed from the world, and we must all stand against them.
If you really want to have enemies, then you should consider corruption as your enemy. You should regard violence and anger as your enemies. All these deserve to be removed from the world.
So it is these negative forces that we have to oppose in the world, rather than opposing or fighting against a person or a group of people. We should remember that everyone belongs to us and there should be no delay in accepting this truth totally.
If all the people of the world listen to this, then all the fighting would come to an end.
Now you should not insist or force everyone to agree to this and believe it. It is possible that some people may not accept this fact at all. It is okay.
See, that is their nature and they will behave that way. We must do what we have to do.
(Note: The discourse was given in Hindi. Above is a translation of the original talk.)
