Mohanji's Musings 3
Beautiful Minds
A Dream to Ponder
Written by Mohanji
David woke up from a beautiful, profound dream. It was, in a way, both elevating and disturbing. He saw himself as a boy, along with his grandfather who is no more, strolling down on the banks of a river. It was evening. Sun was turning red. Birds were flying home after a full day of being There was a gentle, cool breeze. The village was very familiar. He has been there before. out.
Grandfather was holding David’s hand and he seemed a bit extra cautious about David’s security. As they walked through the walkway running parallel to the river, they witnessed and experienced many beautiful sights and sounds. What caught David’s attention and his waking memory was a prayer that came floating from one of the small huts, apparently from the throat of some children. It went somewhat like this…
“Different spaces, different times
Oh Lord, thou carried me like a faithful boatman.
Safe and Secure, Safe and Secure…
Through the time and seasons alike
“Different faces, different tunes
Oh Lord, thou protected me like a mother bird, her children.
Safe and Secure, Safe and Secure
Through summer, winter, spring and rain.”
A feeling of powerful protection enveloped David. It gave a strong feeling of reassurance. Grandfather’s hands and the lovely prayer accompanied and re-inforced his feeling of well-being. David called his grandfather ‘BABA’. He was deeply connected with his grandfather, to the extent that they knew one another’s every subtle vibration, let alone profound emotions. As they walked on, he asked his beloved grandfather:
“Baba, where are we going?”
Baba smiled and said: “I want to introduce you to my friends. We went to school together, we played in the same team, and grew up together, just like you, Mark and Alf.”
David smiled, “Baba, I cannot imagine you as a young man, let alone a boy”.
Baba laughed aloud. “I was not born old. I was not this old always”.
Baba was a tall man with slightly drooping shoulders, one side of his shoulder bent slightly to the front and to one side. He was of extraordinary character. He was always in command of every situation. He was never seen emotional. Always jovial, calm and collected. He always used his intellect and quite knew what he was doing. David has never seen him idle, even at his old age.
Their journey ended at a graveyard in front of a church near the river. David was surprised.
“Where are your friends? Will they come here? Are we meeting them here?” This was indeed an uncommon place for any friendly get-together.
Baba said, “No. They are already here”.
Baba took David to a stone which read “William Smith”. Baba said “Will has been my classmate and my best friend. He was the best man at my wedding too. An unshakable strong man, a brave heart. He had worked hard in foreign lands, made his money and returned home after his retirement. We met after a long time. He was a firebrand in his youth, daring and charming. When he came back after all those years, he looked tired and withdrawn, a bit too distracted. He seemed more interested in isolation and hid himself from society, as much as he could. I tried to bring him back to some old personal memories to revive his old vigour. But he showed no interest at all. He had three children. They all fought with him at his old age over property and money. They even abused him and never agreed with whatever he told or asked them, or wanted them to do. Finally, he died broken-hearted, alone. Will was once a strong man, everybody’s hero. I could not see him so heartbroken and deserted. This is what old age does for some. David, if we are not careful enough to nurture relationships while we can, later on, life could bring isolation and alienation. That can even be called “living in hell”, with no love, warmth and togetherness, exactly the things that one craves, when one is weak and unprotected.
David said: “Baba, are all your friends dead?”
(The graveyards of farm animals are human stomachs!) Human Graveyard. All of them have had their lives and all of them have had their deaths. Caring for the Living is more important than caring for the dead. Often, we ignore the living and care for our dead. We do things upside down. We should certainly respect the dead, but not at the cost of the living..
Baba smiled and said “Not all. Some are still alive. But, they are old, you see. Most cannot move on their own. They need help. They are heavily dependent on others. Old age often makes people invalid and handicapped.”
David felt quite relieved that his grandfather can move on his own and is relatively healthy to that standard. Yet, David experienced a strange kind of uneasiness creeping up his throat. He felt that he would get depressed by meeting all these old friends of his grandfather in the graveyard. Yet, he knew that Baba had a purpose, even though it was not quite entertaining for David. He said: “Baba, let us go home. I am not feeling good.”
Baba said: “David, two more introductions and we shall go home.” Baba tried to cheer David up who was slowly settling into his gloom.
The next tombstone read “Stephen Summer”. “He has been our pilot man.” Baba spoke as if it was a joke. David was too withdrawn by then, to enjoy any jokes. The whole situation made him extremely uneasy.
“Even when we were young, he wanted to become a pilot and fly aircraft. He got into the army and moved into the air command segment and became a pilot. He has participated in many wars and bombed many people and places. And that was his deepest regret in his later years. Fighting nagging cancer in his abdomen, though looked after well by his devoted wife Lisa, whenever we met for a coffee, he would say “How many people have I killed in my young days!!!. Women, Children, Men, Old and Young. I do not know their faces, thank God. But, they haunt me every night. Faceless bodies come forth and ask me “What did we do to you, to destroy our lives? We were just beginning to live, taste the sweet and sour buds of life, you wrenched us out of our beds. How will you pay us back, how will you give us back our lives?” Regrets were eating into his flesh. Steve repented day and night. He even welcomed death as a solace to his aching conscience. He refused to be treated and used the pain that his illness profusely gave as a kind of purgatorial from his sins.
He thought death would finally redeem him. Helplessness tormented him. Finally, he gave up and here he stays”, Baba pointed out at the gravestone.
The last one was that of Eric. He was an actor. He was after fame and recognition. He became addicted to intoxicants and died quite young. He could not ever find a stable relationship and even though he had many children from different women, there were none to take care of him, nor look after him at his death bed. He died alone, in a hospital, with a longing to see his children and experience their love, which he never nurtured when they were young. I tried my best to convince some of them to go and meet their father who was on his death bed. None showed any interest and gave me lame excuses. He never cared for his children when he was young. The children never cared for him when he was old, sick and helpless. Life is like a mirror. You reap what you sow.”
“As for me, I have been quite mediocre, compared to them all, and I did not go anywhere from this place. They all saw the world outside this village. I did not see much beyond this village. I saw only my inner world. My world has been within me. The whole world was within me. In the end, they could not hold on to their large world, but I could. I am not boasting, but just proving a point. I learned to make buildings and do some farming which made my living. More than grains, I sowed love and I nurtured it. I distributed it in this village itself, as best as I could. Your grandmother was a great soul. She never allowed any visitor to leave our house with an empty stomach. More than the food, our genuine care satisfied our visitors. We have always been quite self-sufficient, yet our neighbours always shared their happiness with us, just like we did. They cared for us, and considered us worthy of their time and space. There is no substitute for HARD WORK. There is no substitute for LOVE.”
“I have been busy and my life has been quite rich and meaningful. As a hobby, I learned astrology. I never practised astrology for money. I just guided a few who came to me to shed some light on some of their personal confusions. Astrology is the ability to read into one’s destiny using the movement pattern of planets and stars. If destiny was a variable, astrology would fail. Fortunately, it is not. Destiny is constant, pre-determined. The science of astrology is based on a definite road map called destiny, a pre-planned journey that one takes in one lifetime. It is a science. It is sheer mathematics. The element of free will and the element of grace can always alter that to some extent.
Thus, I lived a simple life, away from the rush of the towns and lived long enough to see my wandering friends dead and buried! How many dreams and aspirations we chewed on during our youth! How many dreams we weaved. Some were realized, and some were left unfulfilled. I have no regrets. It is time for me to go too. I may not survive this summer. My time is near. Death does not frighten me, nor am I worried about my life after death.”
“I do not know any God. I have not seen God. No God has come to me and guided me, let alone come to criticize me, beat me, or judge me. I believe that for the hungry, God is food and for the cold, God is warmth. In the summer, God comes as a cool breeze and in the spring, God appears as blossoms. I believe there is no God apart from its various forms. I believe God expresses itself through us too, as kindness, compassion and Love, while Devil, if there is one, expresses itself as jealousy, hatred, anger, and revenge. I do not know any grand philosophy nor do I want to know. What is the use of knowing it, if I cannot use it? I do not want anything that I cannot use or practice.”
David then saw his grandfather, grandmother, his parents and all his cousins at an outdoor party near a beautiful river. All were singing and dancing and there was immense love and sense of belongingness in the air. David sang many songs and had lots of fun.
It lost its life for us to celebrate an occasion!!!an occasion!!! 
Be Aware of What you eat. Eat with complete Awareness
There was a lot of food and drinks on the table, and when he touched a piece of bar-be-cued meat of a suckling pig-ling, (a speciality at important gatherings) he heard the voice of his grandfather again, even though he could not see him. “Remember David, that baby pig did not die happy, for you. It was forcefully killed. It was murdered for your enjoyment. Snatched from its mother’s breast while it was drinking its mother’s milk. Its mother is still alive and missing her child. Some of its brothers and sisters are still alive. Eat with clear understanding. Eat with awareness.” David dropped the meat. He could not consume any meat anymore.
He woke up with clear memory of the entire dream and he knew that his dear departed grandfather has just conveyed a very important and life-changing message to him. He had just used the medium of a dream to convey it, because he had already left this world and there was no way he could talk to David.
This was a crucial point in David’s life as he was getting more and more involved in a particular path of education that he chose and he was getting too introverted, indifferent and insensitive towards the outside world because of it. Even though his parents never interfered, he had taken a lot of responsibilities onto himself and was already suffering the pressures, pains and weight of it. Anxiety over the possibility of failures or defeats were also affecting his self-esteem. David got a clear remedy to his dilemma from his Grand Father’s message. He decided “LIFE HAS GOT TO BE SIMPLE! Why do we make it complicated? We must definitely work hard. But, we must love our work. Love for work will remove all pressures and pains. If we love what we do, old age cannot make dents in our life.” The life of Baba’s three close friends clearly made David understand the futility of mad pursuits. Everything eventually ends up in the grave.
All emotions, ego, ambitions end up in the same place. A life filled with love and laughter is worth more than the millions in the bank. He decided that he should appreciate what has been given to him, rather than be always dissatisfied, focusing on what he could not achieve as yet. He stopped comparing himself with others and judging or criticizing himself. He understood that he has always been in pursuit of something or the other that he did not have, ignoring everything that he already had. He realized that failing to enjoy the available materials or relationships always lead one to permanent disillusionment and eventual depression. He also realized that constant resistance to everything also consumes a lot of energy and it makes one tired. David decided to shift his life in 180 degrees. Love is the remedy. That is all he needed to learn and remember. Love is all one needs. He woke up to a completely new life.
P.S. Sometimes, protecting angels will take you to the astral plane and deliver such experiences. Its memory stays, if it is relevant to your terrestrial life. In order to keep the memories, directions and guidelines would be well engraved in the conscious memory, if that information was expected to be used in one’s life. It would be presented as a dream, even though it is an astral experience, a total communion. This is just for your understanding. Please understand that there are millions of permutations and combinations possible in our existence. So, do not think in terms of any specific patterns. Everything is individualistic and unique. Each moment is unique and each method is unique. One’s food could be another’s poison. So, do not judge experiences, but value them. Everything has relevance in some way, to someone.
Originally Published on January 01, 2012
https://brahmarishimohanji.wordpress.com/2012/01/01/beautifulminds/
Mohanji on Krishna
wish all of you a very happy Janmashtami. Lord Krishna, an enigma, an avatar; human par excellence. What he is not, it’s very difficult to say; a child, a friend, a lover, a lord, a king, a politician, a husband, you name it. In every aspect of life, he excelled Whenever I remember Lord Krishna,
I always feel a kind of excitement. Imagine that he lived thousands of years ago, but we feel great excitement even now when we think about him. What an incarnation! Have we seen any such incarnations at all? It’s not easy. To excel in every aspect of life, it takes an avatar.
Dharmic Births
Avataric births, as we know, are dharmic births; they’re born for the sake of preservation of dharma, righteousness, righteous duties. He came, and he never left. Even now, we experience Krishna Consciousness. When we think about him, when we remember him, when we remember his stories, it inspires us, makes us alive, and brings life in us. That’s what one avatar like Krishna can do to the world.
Purpose
During the Janmashtami, on Janmashtami day, my daughter Ammu died in 2000. It was on that day. So, almost all Janmashtamis, I perform her rituals. So, I naturally associate Janmashtami with the death of Ammu. But again, nothing is by accident. Everything has a deep meaning. Everything has a purpose. Without purpose, nothing happens in life; nothing happens in the world.
I always believe that there is a higher purpose behind everything. Every happiness, every sorrow, every situation has a higher purpose. Krishna’s birth, life, and exit from the physical form displayed that perfection, that purpose. Krishna is purpose. We are purpose; our life has a purpose. Everything that happens every moment determines that purpose. Experience is purpose. Everything is a purpose.
What Triggers this Puropse?
Supreme consciousness. Supreme consciousness, which is ever-present here, there, and everywhere, guides us, leads us, or activates us. A personification of supreme consciousness is Lord Krishna.
Supreme Parabrahma is coming in a form for the sake of righteousness, preserving dharma on Earth and, in that context, spreading brightness through centuries, through eras, yugas, and being alive in thousands of minds. What else can we ask for? An avataric birth and still bringing light to thousands of minds. It’s an inspiration; thinking about him is an inspiration.
Today, we see lots of anguish, anger, hatred, displacements, deaths in the name of man-made divisions. We have divided this Earth into many pieces for the sake of personal greed, selfishness, so on and so forth.
This birth of Krishna should be in our hearts. Krishna united people, united mankind, waged wars to preserve dharma. We should preserve dharma. There should be no displacement; there should be no calamities, no deaths, no cruelty, no violence. There should be perfect peace on Earth. We can create heaven on Earth. That’s what Krishna reminds us.
Krishna is You
Krishna is beauty. Krishna is romance. Krishna is love; Krishna is compassion. Krishna is everything positive, the highest of human aspiration. Krishna is YOU. So, we have to live ‘Krishna’. We have to love as Krishna. We have to be Krishna all the time. That Krishna is born today. Let it take place in our hearts. Our heart is the cradle, and Krishna is the supreme consciousness, brightness, love, compassion, selflessness, nonviolence; this is what is born inside us. Feel it.
God is feeling. God has to be felt; Krishna has to be felt. Through our own actions, through our behaviour, patterns, character, constitution, life, we should express Krishna. Krishna lives, and Krishna will always live. As long as we exist, as long as we believe in ourselves, as long as we believe in the birth of supreme consciousness within us, Krishna will live.
Aham Brahmasmi
I wish all of you a great Krishna Janmashtami. May you be bright and bright and brighter than the brightest. May you always attain the highest experience from human life, not just eat, drink, sleep and die. Experience this supreme consciousness, the Father of it all.
I wish you that capacity, that reminder. Krishna’s birth will bring that reminder of who we actually are: Aham Brahmasmi, I am the consciousness. That experience must happen. It’s not words; words are powerless; experience/feeling is powerful, thoughts are even more powerful than words in that context.
Let Krishna be in your thoughts, always; let Krishna be in your awareness always. Be Krishna, be as Krishna.
I wish you Krishna consciousness. I wish you a great life ahead. I wish you a great Krishna Janmashtami.
Originally published August 28, 2021 on Mohanji’s Q&A and Satsang site: https://mohanji.org/blogs/satsangs/2021/08/28/krishna-consciousness-2021/
Mohanji’s Musings – Enlightenment and Dissolution
Extracted from “Enlightenment and Dissolution” by Mohanji,
first Published July 04, 2010.
https://brahmarishimohanji.wordpress.com/2010/07/04/enlightenment-and-dissolution/
QUESTION: What is Enlightenment?
MOHANJI: Enlightenment cannot be easily explained in words. Enlightenment happens, when the ground is set for its landing. It happens, when doing-ness stops and being-ness takes place. It happens in the absolute level of equanimity, where the ego element remains completely nullified. It is a shift in awareness. Enlightenment is a big leap. This means a leap from limited awareness, to unlimited awareness. From the state of limited body consciousness, its attached mind consciousness and its intellect and ego, to unlimitedly expanded awareness state. The awareness is in 360 degrees. You are aware of everything around you and the bodily boundaries are blurred. This happens when the same mind that goes for a stroll with the senses merges and dissolves with the soul instead. Deeper unity and total awareness take place. 
QUESTION: Is the actual experience of Enlightenment describable?
MOHANJI: It is not. Words are far too shallow to explain an experience such as the explosion of silence or cosmic consciousness. Many people have attempted it. Paramahamsa Yogananda does it in the ‘Autobiography of a Yogi’. Usually, silence slides in after the experience and the need for expression gets erased. For many people, the need for communication itself gets erased. There is nothing to do, nothing to prove, nothing to say. Everything just is. Everything is a part of our existence and we are part of everything too. In such condition, there is perfect stillness and supreme perfection. How can anyone explain such a state? Even if someone does, it will only become a theory in the reader’s mind. Moreover, Enlightenment experience is not the same for all. It differs from person to person. It differs with each person’s individual constitution. It differs according to the Sattwa, Rajas, Tamas combination of the individual who undergoes the shift. So, even though a general idea can be given about the experience, like Paramahamsa did, it is not really describable.
QUESTION: Is enlightenment the final? Then what?
MOHANJI: Enlightenment is like a graduation. You have arrived at a different level of existence. Then, before complete liberation, there are still miles to travel. However, the push of the mind for results will not be bothering you and hence the journey will be more pleasant. So, once the shift of higher awareness happens within, the path ahead becomes fully illumined.
Two main parallel things happen, quite simultaneously. One is the self purification and dissolution, and the second is the repayment of debts to the Mother Earth. This is the most treacherous time. First of all, the grossness and street-smartedess of terrestrial existence is less. And secondly, the enlightened one has to live with the gross society while existing in his/her subtler state. People get tossed around a lot, in this state.
to the terrestrial lures. It does not matter if it is an enlightened man or an unenlightened one. The effect is more or less the same. So, if the Yogi intends to convey his wisdom to the terrestrial world, he also needs to face the consequences related to the terrestrial existence.
For most Yogis, who have already shifted from Karma to Dharma, terrestrial interaction is only a self-less service, SEVA. Then again, high level of equanimity and self-control is necessary. This is easier for a woman than a man, because, men get lured by sight (Visual oriented-ness) and women get lured only by touch or feeling. Many Yogis fall. We have seen that happening time and again. This is also because, even though the enlightenment has occurred, the subtle samskaaras (impressions) still exist in the deeper layers. This provokes desires for enjoyment of sensory pleasures, if he has not grown beyond it. Even if they have grown beyond it, often, they reflect those who come into contact with them, as a truthful mirror. They express the other’s samskaaras, take it over and eventually suffer from that. This is mainly on two matters – Food and Sex; the two aspects that bind all species and human kind especially on terrestrial plane. If food is considered as sustenance to maintain the physical form and sex to maintain the species, man stays objective and unaffected by its lures. When it slips into greed and lust, man falls. Sometimes, they even pretend that they are immune to everything and perform the mischiefs in disguise. This pulls them down completely.
Many people who have tasted liberation, prefer to escape into anonymity and isolation. They do not stay at the same place more than three nights and do not eat from the same plate etc, to avoid any attachment. This truly helps. But, it is not easy. Not everyone can do it.
QUESTION: Can you define gross?
MOHANJI: Gross means gravity. Gravity only affects the gross or the dense. When the elevation in consciousness happens, lightness also happens. Gravity or pull of earth is reduced substantially. Each sheath of human substratum has various degree of subtlety. Each sheath is prone to some amount of terrestrial gravity, binding or, simply put – pull. As we shift from gross food sheath (anna maya kosha) to the mind sheath (mano maya kosha) itself, the gravitational pull is reduced in a subtle way. Then, through the shift to other sheaths, till bliss sheath, (ananda maya kosha), the transitions reduce dependency on earth. Thus, stage by stage, man attains liberation. As he transcends each sheath, his gravitational pull also gradually gets reduced. When you become the soul, there is no gravitational pull. Only the karmic baggage is prone to gravitation. From gross body to the state of our soul, through the sheaths, man transcends. This is indeed a long journey. Faith and Purity will accent the momentum and help the journey. In the journey, many obstacles will happen, triggered by Samskaaras and Vasanas (subtle impressions with emotions attached to them).
In the journey, many Masters will come as road signs to guide you to walk the right path. Many lower beings will come forward and confuse you too. You are free to choose your path, as options are available, based on your tastes, even though the final destination is the same for everyone.
QUESTION: Can you talk about Dissolution vs. Enlightenment?
MOHANJI: Sure. So, enlightenment takes the awareness to the level of the soul. One who is enlightened understands the symmetry of the larger life behind his regular existence. Enlightenment does not automatically take one to dissolution.
Dissolution is still an ongoing process. Dissolution is again, a sheath by sheath process. Impressions of numerous lifetimes have gotten stuck in the web of existence and our sheaths. In the place of action, impressions of thoughts, words and actions of generations lay preparing the rope for further action. Just like the external world, our internal world also has similar patterns lying deeply embedded to bring forth life to thought, word or action. True liberation happens only once deep and complete cleansing happens on various levels. Enlightenment helps this process, because the awareness is much higher at that state and it gives clarity, understanding and, essentially, objectivity from emotions. Aside from the embedded impressions from the sheaths, detachment from elements is also essential. This happens by itself. When awareness improves, elements – which are gross in nature, release its grip slowly and steadily. Remember, the lure of the terrestrial world is always waiting outside the doors of your senses. You have to constantly fight them with higher awareness and not by suppression. Suppression is not eradication. Existence without temptations -not needing any of it, even if it is available – is what helps this process.
Higher awareness is the key to detachment. When the grip of elements is less, man’s dependency on food, water, and a prescribed space for existence also gives way. He can then survive on universal energy. Ancient Masters have mastered the art of surviving without food or water and thought process. This is possible and indeed real. So, path of dissolution is long and winding. But, eventually, everyone must walk this path.
QUESTION: Can Complete Dissolution happen in one life time?
MOHANJI: Yes. But, it does not happen because emotions and attachments creep in with each new life, even if we are very careful and controlled. How could Menaka lure Vishwamitra into having a physical relationship with her? So, the path is very, very narrow and risky. It usually takes life times to eradicate all impressions, desires, and dreams to liberate the man from the need to be on earth. If the desires are earthly, he should be here. So, he keeps coming back. 
The final is the debt that he must repay for using the facilities of the earth. That can be achieved only through self-less service for the mother earth and its children, which means all beings. The tool for accomplishing that is Unconditional Love. Complete liberation is a process. The deeper the silence in the Master, the deeper is His detachment. Desire to prove or talk is only on the surface, and that too, towards the shore, like waves of the ocean.
If a man talks too much, usually, he is surface-oriented, and does not have much depth. He will come back again and again till silence deepens and takes over. Silence does not mean physical silence. Silence means the silence within or lack of any mental activity. Switching over to dharmic life precedes complete liberation. He will need nothing from earth. He will give all what he has to the earth and its children. His existence will not hurt the earth. It will only soothe the earth. His walking on earth will make the trees, plants and animals of the earth rejoice. Big cleansing happens to everyone and everything, just by His sheer presence and existence.
Extracted from “Enlightenment and Dissolution” by Mohanji, first Published July 04, 2010. https://brahmarishimohanji.wordpress.com/2010/07/04/enlightenment-and-dissolution/
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