Episodes

  • Vivekachudamani 14 Renouncing Worldly Desires - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 14 Renouncing Worldly Desires - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    May 9 2025
    81st verse: “People may get momentary wisdom (Apata-vairagya) or renunciation due to setbacks in life. With this momentary wisdom, they try to cross the river of worldly life. Along the way, the crocodile of desire, greed and envy catches them. Renunciation should not be momentary. It should be stable.”

    Such people are compared to a fool who tries to cross a river sitting on a crocodile. One needs a solid boat or ship to cross the river. Real renunciation constitutes such a boat.

    The wisdom that comes from times of disappointments may not last long. After some time, strong desires emerge in the mind and can capsize the person, if the sense of renunciation is not very strong.

    Shankaracharya emphasizes the importance of tenacity and steadiness in spiritual life in the 326th verse. “Imagine a child playing with a ball at the top of a staircase. If the ball falls, it does not stop until it reaches the bottom. Similarly, in spiritual life, we should be very vigilant not to make mistakes.”

    While the verse emphasizes steadiness, a single mistake is not the end of one’s spiritual journey. Every little spiritual effort bears its result.

    83rd verse: “Spiritual path is very difficult if the mind is not ready and does not cooperate. Spiritual path is simple for those whose minds are ready, who listen to the teachings of ancient sages and draw inspiration from them. They are bound to reach their destination.”

    84th verse: If you want to attain Moksha, stay away from the toxic poison of worldly desires. Poison ends our life. Imbibe spiritual values such as contentment. Compassion, forbearance, and self-control. Spiritual values are like nectar that enrich our life.”

    Vedanta is not world negating. When one travels on a boat, the boat should be on water. Water should not enter the boat. Our life is like the boat and worldliness is like water. One should live in the world but remain unaffected by worldliness. Worldliness should not enter our life.

    Householders should mentally give up worldly desires. Sri Ramakrishna said that householders should practice mental renunciation. Monks should practice both internal and external renunciation. Janaka was a king but unattached to worldly possessions.

    Among the four levels of social structure, high importance was given to householders as they generate the wealth to support the other three ashramas. Householders who do not generate wealth to support their family are considered adharmis.

    85th verse: “We are bound in mysterious ignorance and a lack of awareness of our true nature. We have the wrong notion (avidya) that we are this body and that this world is meant for enjoyments. We should practice spiritual disciplines to get out of this bondage. One who does not make such attempts and keeps pampering the body, kills himself.”

    A Sanskrit verse says: “This human body is for someone else.” Upon death, in ancient times, it was eaten by animals and ancients. In modern times, after death, it belongs to the tube in the crematorium, the fire or the earth.

    The same human body can be a wonderful tool for a higher purpose. We cannot pray, meditate or study scriptures without this body. If we think of this body as the goal, we are lost.

    Beyond a limit, wealth is only an illusion. It is as good as non-existent. We own only what we make use of.
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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 13 The Crest Jewel of Wisdom - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 13 The Crest Jewel of Wisdom - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    May 2 2025
    d
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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 12 Uncontrolled Senses Lead to Destruction - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 12 Uncontrolled Senses Lead to Destruction - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Apr 18 2025
    The student poses seven questions in the 51st verse. The rest of the text answers these seven questions. The seven questions are: (1) What is this bondage? (2) How does it come about? (3)
    How does it exist and what sustains it? (4) How do we come out of it? (5) What is anatman? (6) What is the supreme Atman? (7) How do we differentiate between atman and anatman?

    Starting with the 74th verse, the teacher begins to answer the fifth question posed by the student:
    “What is anatman?” by discussing the gross body. There are three sariras: Sthula sarira (gross body), sukhshma sarira (subtle body, the personality behind the gross body) and karana sarira (lack of understanding of our true nature).

    In the 74th, 75th and 76th verses, the teacher discusses Sthula Sarira or physical body. It is composed of marrow, bone, fat, flesh, blood, skin and cuticle. It also includes legs, thighs, chest, arms, back and head. These together constitute the physical body. When we identify with this physical body, we are deluded.”

    While the gross body may seem detestable, it is a great asset, as it is what we use to achieve liberation.

    A machine is made of parts. If we take one part out, it becomes non-functional. Similarly, the physical body is a machine made of parts. It belongs to the perishable, empirical world. It has borrowed intelligence (from Atman). We delude ourselves into thinking that this machine is our true nature. We refer to this machine when we say “I”. This misunderstanding is rooted in ignorance of our true nature. It is the basis of bondage.

    When Socrates was sentenced to die by drinking poison, one of his disciples, Crito, approached him and asked him” “How do you want us to bury you?” Socrates replied: “For that, you should first know who is the real “I”.

    77th verse: Those who are deluded are called Mudha. They are attached to sense objects through an invisible rope that binds them to this world. They are spiritually enslaved by desire of the senses. It is a bondage that makes them move up and down in cyclic existence.”
    Attachment here refers to obsessive attachment to an extent that it makes us spiritually enslaved.

    78th verse: Shankaracharya uses examples from the animal kingdom to explain how one reaches destruction when guided by the senses - Deer (sense of hearing), Elephant (sense of touch). Moth (sense of seeing), Fish (sense of taste), Bee (sense of smell). Each of these creatures reaches death as they are guided by one of their senses. What to speak of humans who have five senses active all the time.

    79th verse: “The poison of a cobra is less poisonous than the poison of sense objects. The cobra has to bite you and the poison has to be consumed. Seeing the cobra does not kill you. But mere sight of a sense object can remain in the mental system for a long time and can be a door to destruction, depending on one’s mental constitution.”
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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 11 Developing Detachment Towards Non-Eternal - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 11 Developing Detachment Towards Non-Eternal - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Apr 11 2025
    Developing Detachment Towards Non-Eternal
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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 10 Realization Requires Spiritual Effort - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 10 Realization Requires Spiritual Effort - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Apr 4 2025
    Title: Realization Requires Spiritual Effort

    Verses: 64, 65, 66, 67

    The essence of the 60th, 61st and 62nd verses is: “Books are helpful, but by themselves they do not constitute the supreme goal. Books by themselves will not help us with the highest spiritual realization. Long, eloquent scholarly discussions can only confuse oneself and others. As long as one has not realized the spiritual truth, books are useless. Upon realization of the spiritual truth, books are useless. The world of books is like a big jungle that can only create confusion, if we do not understand that the spiritual truth is beyond books.”

    Scriptures attempt to describe the truth – they do not constitute the supreme truth. Spiritual truth is beyond ideas and books – it is a matter of inner experience. With this understanding, we should read scriptures.

    The same idea is emphasized in the 63rd verse with an analogy. If someone is bitten by a cobra, he needs medicine to recover. Similarly, our ignorance can only be cured by a medicine - the realization of Brahman, the real experience of spiritual unity.

    Ajnanam refers to a lack of awareness of our true nature. It does not refer to intellectual ignorance. It refers to ignorance at an emotional level, because our mind does not permit us to do what we may intellectually understand and want to do.

    We have to remove the levels of dirt/filth in the mind by feeding it good food and directing it towards healthy channels.

    Upon enlightenment, our mind develops a corrective mechanism. It becomes impossible for us to do anything that is harmful to others.

    64th and 65th verses continue the analogy: “A sickness is not cured by uttering the word “medicine”. One actually has to take the medicine. Similarly, just by saying “Brahman”, one does not realize Brahman. Without dissolving the world in Brahman, without realizing the Atman, one cannot get liberation.”

    In Vedanta, this world is only an appearance as illustrated in the rope snake analogy. When light is brought to the room, what we previously thought was a snake, dissolves into the rope. Similarly, the empirical world should be dissolved into Atman.

    The 66th verse repeats the same idea with another analogy: “To be a king, one should have a kingdom. One should have conquered enemies and acquired wealth. One does not become a king by just claiming that he is a king. Similarly, without undertaking spiritual practices, one cannot become enlightened.

    67th verse: “Suppose someone tells you that there is a box of treasure hidden somewhere beneath the earth. The treasure is covered by a huge stone in the pit. To get to the treasure, the following has to happen: (1) You should hear about it from someone (2) You should know the exact location (3) You should go there and dig and remove the stone (4) Then, you can take out the treasure.

    Similarly, to realize the spiritual truth, we should first listen to spiritual ideas expounded by the great sages. We should practice sravanam, mananam, nididhyasanam – listen to spiritual ideas, contemplate on it and deeply internalize it. By doing so, we remove all the wrong ideas about our true nature – this is like digging to remove the stone. “

    Chandogya Upanishad has the following illustration: “A sage from Gandhara had gone to another town and is returning to his hometown. Along the way, some robbers ambushed him, blindfolded him, and tied him to a tree in a forest. To escape, what should he do? He should make a loud noise. Then someone passing through that way can hear him, remove his blindfold, and release him. Such a person can bring him back to the road and show him the way to Gandhara.” In this illustration, the traveler is a normal human being, who thinks the world is meant for sensory enjoyment. The robbers represent his own actions. His bitter experience is due to his bad karmas.

    The blindfold represents Maya. His desire for worldly enjoyment is the rope that binds him. Body is the forest in which he is lost. The person helping him is his teacher, who knows which road to take to reach Gandhara, his own spiritual home.”
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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 9 Going Beyond Books - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 9 Going Beyond Books - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Mar 29 2025
    Title: Going Beyond Books

    Verses: 51, 60, 61, 62

    The student poses seven questions in the 51st verse. The rest of the text answers these seven questions. The seven questions are: (1) What is this bondage? (2) How does it come about? (3) How does it exist and what sustains it? (4) How do we come out of it? (5) What is anatman? (6) What is the supreme Atman? (7) How do we differentiate between atman and anatman?

    Buddha refers to bondage as “Dukkha” – a feeling of imperfection with empirical enjoyments. Patanjali uses the term “Parinama Dukkha” – he says that spiritually elevated souls feel a discontentment with the empirical world and pleasures. They have a strong desire to look for something higher.

    What is wrong with robbing a neighbor? Swami Vivekananda answers his own question by saying that it is nit for fear of law enforcement – rather, by doing so, the person would be harming himself. It is the advaitic foundation of universal ethics. Swamiji also said, “The infinite one of the soul is the eternal sanction of all morality and ethics.”

    We are all lonely spiritual travelers, traveling from one life to another. Our goal is to realize the supreme spiritual truth, to realize the presence of the divine within ourselves and in everything.

    The essence of the 60th, 61st and 62nd verses is: “Books are helpful, but by themselves they do not constitute the supreme goal. Books by themselves will not help us with the highest spiritual realization. Long, eloquent scholarly discussions can only confuse oneself and others. As long as one has not realized the spiritual truth, books are useless. Upon realization of the spiritual truth, books are useless. The world of books is like a big jungle that can only create confusion, if we do not understand that the spiritual truth is beyond books.”

    Scriptures attempt to describe the truth – they do not constitute the supreme truth. Spiritual truth is beyond ideas and books – it is a matter of inner experience. With this understanding, we should read scriptures. After crossing a river with a boat, we leave the boat behind – we don’t carry the boat on our head. Similarly, we transcend books upon realization of the truth.

    Scriptures get their authenticity because the teachings within them come from the experience of realized sages. By following their path, we can also experience the truth.
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    1 hr and 3 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 8 Who is an Ideal Teacher? - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 8 Who is an Ideal Teacher? - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Mar 22 2025
    Title: Who is an Ideal Teacher?

    Verses: 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 43

    The 33rd verse describes the characteristics of an ideal teacher. He is a friend and guide of any spiritual seeker. He is well versed in the scriptures (vedas), as part of a lineage. He leads a moral and ethical life, free of sinful deeds. He has no selfish desire. He is a knower of Brahman. He is contemplative and immersed in Brahman. He has no selfish aspiration left, just like a fire that has consumed all its fuel. He is an ocean of compassion with no strings attached.”

    Spiritual ideals should be learnt from a teacher who is part of a lineage. The lineage transmits not just the knowledge but also the ability to make proper use of that knowledge and avoid improper use. For example, Pranayama, if practiced to extremes without the guidance of a teacher, can lead to delusions of grandeur.

    The 34th verse describes the attitude of the student. He should be pure mentally, verbally and physically (trikarana-shuddhi). With humility, politeness and an attitude of service, he should approach the teacher.

    We only get from a teacher what our mind is ready for. If we go to an ocean with a glass, we can only bring back a glass of water. An ant going to a mound of sugar can only bring back a grain of sugar. Similarly, we get from a teacher what we are fit for.

    If we do not have a reverence towards a higher ideal, we will be enslaved by a lower ideal. Reverence should not be equated to slavery.

    The 35th and 36th verses describe what the student should say to the teacher. He says: “You are a friend and guide to those who come to you. Save me from this ocean of samsara. Just like rain that falls as a blessing, pour your compassion on us. We are being burnt in the fire of samsara. Save us from this death.”

    In the 37th verse, the student describes the qualities of the teacher. He says: “They are calm, quiet and self-restrained. They are knowers of Brahman. They live in this world like the spring season, bringing joy, happiness, sustenance. They travel from place to place and are a blessing to humanity. They themselves have crossed the ocean of samsara and want to help others do the same.”

    The student feels that the world is a terrible place. Patanjali refers to it as Parinama Dukkha – it is the feeling of despair despite everything going to expectations. There is a desire to look for something higher. It only happens to highly evolved souls.

    In the 43rd verse, the teacher addresses the student. The teacher says: “Don’t worry. Don’t be scared. There is a way to get out of samsara. Many sages have gone across this ocean. I will teach you this ancient path now, which has been well established by the great sages.”
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    1 hr and 14 mins
  • Vivekachudamani 7 Importance of Vairagya and Mumukshutvam - By Swami Tattwamayananda

    Vivekachudamani 7 Importance of Vairagya and Mumukshutvam - By Swami Tattwamayananda
    Mar 14 2025
    So far, in the text, we covered the following topics: (1) Uniqueness of human life (2) Need for a higher spiritual goal (3) Four important qualities for spiritual seeker

    The 28th verse describes the three stages of a seeker’s journey. First stage starts with reading of scriptures, doing karma yoga, and developing some conviction about the teachings. In the second stage, that conviction becomes part of the seeker’s emotional system. In the third stage, there is intense desire for spiritual liberation through the grace of a teacher.

    29th verse: “Without intensifying the sense of renunciation for worldly enjoyments (vairagya) and without an intense desire for liberation (mumukshutvam), spiritual practices such as Sama, Dama, Uparati, Titiksa, Shraddha, Samadhana the do not bear their fruit.”

    There have been scourges of humanity, who had intense power of concentration, but their efforts resulted in tragedies. This is because they lacked the two qualities mentioned in the 29th verse.

    Extreme selfish desires lead to self-destruction. Bhasmasura prayed to God to have the power to turn into ashes anyone on whom he placed his hand. He ended up using his power on himself and turned into ashes.

    There is another verse from one of Shankaracharya’s work that says: “Our attitude towards greed should be similar to our attitude towards something nasty such as the excreta of a crow. We should be able to see the drawbacks of excessive desire for worldly enjoyments.” We should be able to lift our consciousness above the body consciousness.

    30th verse: “Wherever the intensity of renunciation for worldly pleasures (vairagya) and the desire for liberation (mumukshutvam) are weak, spiritual practices are a mere appearance. They don’t have a lasting effect. They are momentary like a drop of water that quickly evaporates due to the heat in a desert. For lasting effect, intellectual conviction has to translate into our emotional system.”

    In the 31st and 32nd verses, Shankaracharya defines Bhakti as: “Bhakti is the earnest desire to find out our own true nature, that we are the Atman.” It refers to nidhidhyasanam, which is the spiritual discipline that allows us to deeply internalize what we read and contemplate upon.

    The 32nd verse also discusses how a spiritual seeker should approach a teacher. In ancient times, teachers did not earn remuneration for their teachings. Also, students came from all walks of life – kings such as Krishna to poor humble people such as Sudama. What the student brings is a strong desire to learn, humility and a sense of sanctity and sacredness towards the subject and the teacher.

    The teacher should be a true person of renunciation. He should not demand anything for what he teaches except things such as humility, discipline, service and Guru Dakshina (commitment from the student to preserve the shraddha of the tradition and impart the teachings to only deserving people).

    In the convocation address, the final instruction provided to students in the hermitages was: “You should speak and practice the truth. You should uphold dharma You should show reverence towards parents, teachers and guests.”

    There are two ways to know whether we are making spiritual progress: (1) We should have inner fulfillment and a sense of sanctity and sacredness (2) our inner experience becomes a blessing to those around us.
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    1 hr and 8 mins