2.

Whatever Has Sprung from the Five Elements Is Pure Ignorance

Maharaj: The knowledge "I am" is the same in all sentient crea-tures, whether it be an insect, a worm or a human
being, or even an avatar, the highest kind of being. I do not consider this basic consciousness in one form as being
different in any way from the consciousness in another form. ut in order to manifest itself, consciousness needs a
base, a !articular construct in which it can a!!ear. That base can be anything, it may be any form, but the manifesta-
tion can last only so long as that !articular form endures. "nd until that consciousness a!!ears, there cannot be
knowledge of any kind. In sum, knowledge de!ends on consciousness, and consciousness needs a !hysical matri#
or form.
$ne must also consider the im!ortance of the word. The thought arises from the vital breath and e#!resses itself in
the word. %ithout words, there could not be any communication in the world& in fact, there could not have been any
activity, any "busy-ness" 'or business, for that matter(, at all. The world goes on because of the word and the name.
)eo!le could not have been identified without name. *o the word and the name have great im!ortance.
The !rinci!le of naming every !ossible "thing" has been carried forward to the e#tent that even +od had to be given a
name. "nd that name, when re!eated, has a certain significance. "t an early stage of one,s s!iritual develo!ment,
there is no method, no sadhana, more im!ortant or effective than re!eating the name of +od.
-ow there e#ists no !articular reason for the coming about of this consciousness. *o there is no e#!lanation for
how this seed, this consciousness or knowledge "I am," has arisen. ut once it is in e#istence, it cannot stand still.that
is, consciousness is tantamount to "movement." "nd all movement takes !lace through the gunas,* which are
inherent in the knowledge "I am." This consciousness kee!s on "humming".[Maharaj uses the Marathi ord gun-
gun/. and e#!resses itself through the three gunas! These gunas act according to the form which has come about, and
that form has resulted from a !articular food. ehavior and action result from the combinations and
!ermutations of the three gunas!
%hen !eo!le first come here, I always tell them that they come with the !ur!ose of showing off their knowledge
or trying to draw me into an argument. *o I am aware of that, but I am even more strongly aware of the fact that
such !eo!le have not got the slightest idea what they are talking about. I call it !ure ignorance. It is for this reason
that I say, don,t ask any 0uestions, don,t even start discussing, until you have listened to the talk for a while and
absorbed at least some of its contents. Then you can begin asking 0uestions.
1ow do I know that you are com!letely ignorant2 3rom my own e#!erience. "ny infant will take at least a year, a
year and a 0uarter, or a year and a half, before he can even utter a word. That word may not have any meaning, but to
do so, what has ha!!ened2 "gain I am using the word gun"gun, that which is going on internally wanting to come
out.thoughts, odd words, whatever it may be. "nd it does come out. -ow, where did all that originate2
The three gunas.sattva '!urity, clarity, harmony(, rajas '!assion, energy, activity( and tamas 'inertia, resistance, darkness(.are the basic
attributes or 0ualities that underlie and o!erate the world !rocess, according to 1indu teachings.
11. #nderstand $our %n Incarnation
Maharaj: "t the moment you know that you e#ist& you are in the seed of the eingness, although ultimately even
this very eingness is to be transcended. 4verything is enfolded in that seed, just like a whole oak tree is contained in
an acorn. *imilarly, everything is contained in that consciousness: the whole world is there, and that body is also
!resent.
"I am" itself is the world& it contains the entire world. That should be your conviction. 5ust as in a dream, when you
feel that you are awake, but actually you are not and your world at that time is the dream world. *imilarly, this
6nowingness 'in the waking state( contains this so-called real world& that conviction must come. The truth is that
there is no difference between 'dream( consciousness and 'waking( consciousness, although they a!!ear to be
greatly different& all consciousness is one.
7our consciousness itself gives rise to this world, which is a unified field, a unicity. ut, it may be objected, there is
such an infinite variety of sha!es and colors in that world. 1ow can 8eality then be said to be "not-two," advaita& It is
because all these differences e#ist only in your consciousness as a!!earances. The source is the same consciousness,
but the manifestation e#hibits so much variety9
The conviction that this world never e#isted can ha!!en only to the para'rahman! If this is indeed your
conviction, then you are the para'rahman! This thing aside, you should discover how this news "I am".the
knowledge of your e#istence.a!!eared and at what moment. +o to the source of it and find out. y looking u! to
others, to so-called "e#!erts," and following them, or arguing with them, you will not get anywhere. Thus, only
you yourself can find out the truth about yourself.
"7ou will come with me wherever I go." In saying that, I am referring to the vital force, prana! Make friends with
prana and thereby you will be able to catch hold of that +od. The prana will hel! you to know +od. The mind is
only a witness& your real friend is the prana, because it does everything. %aking, slee!ing, digesting food, all these
activities are done by the vital force. (tman is only a witness& so give im!ortance to this vital force and worshi! it,
and you will be able to know +od. In order to do any meditation, you should make friendshi! with the vital force& it
is readily available without any effort.
ecause of the prana, there is mind. "nd because of the mind, there are the )edas! *o ultimately, the source of
this whole scri!ture is the vital force. That is why I give full homage to the vital force. %ithout it, what would be
your value2 7our body would colla!se. $nly when the vital force is !resent do you know the world, the world has
value, and +od has value. 7ou can know about +od and world only when the vital force is there. %ho knows the
greatness of this prana& That itself is +od, )raneshwar.
"s to the connection between mind and vital force, mind is the language of the vital force. %hen there is no vital
force, there is also no mind. The words of prana signify mind. *o how could there be mind without vital force2
This vital force and the consciousness 'that is, the knowledge "I am" or the eingness and the mind( a!!ear
simultaneously and always e#ist together.
6nowledge about the vital force is not generally available& it has not been recorded anywhere. *o this information
might be new to you.