Day 10 - Sep 13, Sat

Chapter 10 - I am the Ultimate

Krishna declares His glories, how He is the Ultimate and how It expresses through Him. He is courageous enough to declare this, not out of ego, but so that Arjuna can experience Him, and through His Being can experience the deep connection with Existence. This is the whole essence of this chapter.

If a wave starts experiencing itself as separate from the ocean, it will resist the natural flow of tides although it is still part of the ocean. In the same way, if we resist Existence, we will struggle until we ultimately realize that we are part of the greater Whole.

Your prana (breath) is the property of Existence. If it does not flow in or out, what you think of as you will not function properly. You currently think that where your body ends, your boundary ends. That is why you are always so protective of yourself. You calculate: What do they want from me and what should I do before they do something. You are defensive before you are even attacked. Defending is just a polite word for offending. Every country claims its military is defensive. So who then is offensive?!

Krishna teaches the Secret of Secrets: Existence is not your enemy. It is your friend, your ally. It is pure intelligence; it responds to each and every one of your thoughts. It protects and cares for you. When we live with the attitude that Existence, Parashakti is our friend, we feel a deep easiness; we experience the deep connection with Existence.

Krishna says, “I am that, I am Existence.” If we study this chapter with deep devotion and sincerity, we will grow alongside Arjuna. Krishna explains His glory not for His sake, not out of ego, but for Arjuna’s sake.

A king goes to see one Dakshinamurti Swamigal. The Swami is sitting, meditating under a tree. The king expects him to stand up and pay his respects. The king says, “You are a beggar, I am a king, why do you not pay respect to me?” The Swami just laughs and says, “Actually you are the beggar. You are begging respect from me. I feel respected whether or not I am respected. My Consciousness does not get affected by either respect or disrespect.”

Be very clear: the moment you ask, you become a beggar.

When you feel deeply connected to someone, you will see him or her as Divine. Arjuna is totally in love and surrendered to Krishna. His head has stopped working, his logic is no longer analyzing. We don't know the meaning of the words ‘falling in love.’ We have forgotten the way to deeply connect through the heart, how to intensely relate to another. In Sanskrit, there is no equivalent word in English for divorce because the concept doesn’t exist. If you feel strongly connected, if you know how to open yourself, even a stone can guide you.

In Daskhina, Calcutta, there is a black marble statue of Devi. Ramakrishna went to put four bracelets of conch shells on each of her wrists. For three of her arms you can slide in the bracelet easily, but in one hand she will be holding a head, but somehow Ramakrishna slipped it in. One devotee was shocked to see that the fourth bracelet had also been put. He looked to see if either the bracelet or the statue had been cut, but there was no sign of this. He asked, “How did you put the bracelet on her?” Ramakrishna said, “I just requested Mother to drop the head for a few moments while I put the bracelet on. She did so and then picked it up again.” Neither the bracelet nor the statue were cut. I have seen the deity with my own eyes. It remains a mystery till date.

When you feel deeply connected, even a statue can respond to the depth and intensity of the connection you feel. But we are afraid of life itself. We take up life insurances, which are really death insurances if you think about it. Just think about it: Only those who remain after your death will enjoy this. Real life insurance is devotion to Existence; understanding that Existence is taking care of you. When you have deep love for Existence, you are guided and taken care of. Existence knows exactly where to put you in life.

Know that if you are alive, you are wanted and needed by Existence. The Divine is always removing what is not needed. It is a perfect Energy. God is not next to cleanliness; God is cleanliness. We are not alive out of accident. We are an incident. When we feel this, we can connect to Existence. Your mind is prepared to fall in tune, to surrender to the Ultimate will of the Divine.

We need to know how to open our Self. We need to deeply trust; to trust even if we feel we are being exploited. There are two kinds of lives we can live: Either we live with complete trust, or we live with an insecure feeling. When we live with an insecure attitude, we only torture our selves and others around us. When we live with trust, our very existence can save the earth.

The energy in our bodies can convert bread to blood. If we had an industry to do this, it would be three miles long! But the whole thing happens inside our body! The big problem is, we don't trust our energy. We can live without feeling insecure or fearful. We can live without thinking. The trouble is, we never try out these ideas in our life. We may hear about them or read them. But to live them is quite another. If we can feel deeply what Krishna says, we can live this.

A Master represents Divine Consciousness. When Krishna says, “I”, He means Cosmic Consciousness - the Ultimate Divine. When He says, “I”, He means the form also. But the Form is beautiful only if it leads you to the formlessness. Form is just a bridge to experience the Divine. Form is just a representation of the Divine. If you are sincere and intense, it doesn’t matter if the form leads you to the Divine. The Divine is in all forms. If you see a finger pointing to the moon, if you only see the finger, you miss the moon!

Many ask, “I feel like I am very close, like I am just around the corner, I am almost there. What am I lacking? Where am I missing?” This is the one question that I want you to ask, that I am trying to get you to ask! A thirst should be created, then you will naturally experience the Truth. Because you feel too much ego in your Being, you see too much ego in Divine Beings also. If you can push your ego aside and listen intensely, you can see the Divine as it is.

Arjuna has completely melted, which is why he now sees Krishna as Existence, the Ultimate, the Divine.

If we are centered on greed, we catch the Divine and ask for things; we start begging. If we are in fear, we ask for protection. The moment you demand, the Divine disappears. Your attitude plays a major role in you seeing the Master as Divine and He seeing you as Divine. For healing to happen, a special kind of bridge must happen. A deep love is necessary. The moment you bring in a business mood, the beauty of the deep connection is lost; the bridge is broken. If the bridge is there, you will be healed. You don't have to be in my presence, with me, or in my space. There is no need for physical proximity. Your deep love, trust and devotion are needed, and you are healed. It is between you and the Divine, your ability to receive it.

People tell me that they are healed by me from miles away, and they ask for confirmation whether this was so. I can download the information and share it with them. But the moment I declare that it was I who appeared or healed, it is over. As long as I am clear that it is Parashakti - the Cosmic Consciousness that is using this form, She will continue to do so. She uses the form of the people who have surrendered to Her.

If you can just get out of your system, the Divine can get in! You will have what you want to have, when you drop the idea of having it. People ask me whether they can follow another Master. I not only tell them yes, but I also encourage them to follow other teachings. The ego needs to be crushed from all sides. All we need is you growing; you experiencing the truth.

To whom you surrender is not important. It is the very attitude of surrender, of feeling deeply connected, that is enough to transform you. The very burning, the quest, the intensity - is enough.

All I am trying to do is this one thing: to create that fire in you. I give you a taste, a glimpse, the deep inspiration for this to happen. I am here to convert your questions into a quest.

Only when you deeply accept your self as you are, will you feel a deep connection with others. You will feel a deep friendliness. This is Spirituality. We may smile, like models, but we always keep a safe distance because we never feel deeply connected. At least accept that you are not able to accept your self as you are, and you will drop from the mind into your Being. That is enough. The very acceptance will open a new Consciousness in you. Accepting everything as it is and you will experience the Divine in everything. A cognitive shift happens in you the moment you accept. Your cognition will be centered on bliss and you will experience everything as Divine.

All the remaining slokas need to be experienced rather than intellectually understood. True Understanding is Experiencing. There are five things to experience: Accepting your self, connecting deeply with the Divine, trusting, completely opening your Self and dropping all vested interests (giving up the begging and hoping that this or that will make you blissful) .

When you just want God, you start to experience God. You feel as though you are melting, expanding. Such expansion brings great joy, for you are becoming a part of the Greatness and the Glory. You begin to experience this Greatness. You enjoy the same joy and bliss. And this is all there IS.