Ambrosial precepts of His Holiness Saint Shri Asharamji Bapu


Uddhava observed that Lord Krishna was free from grief or attachment to the golden city of Dwarika along with entire Yadava dynasty when they were destroyed before his eyes. Uddhava realized that this was because Lord Krishna was firmly established in the Self. He did not consider the world to be real. All world appearance is mithya, unreal.
The unreal world appearance was getting dissolved. Uddhava noted that the Lord was preparing to withdraw His divine Maya and about to go back to His abode. He said, “O Lord! Be merciful to me. Take me along to your abode.”
Lord Krishna said, “Uddhava! Nobody accompanies another while coming to this world or departing it.
यदिदं मनसा वाचा चक्षुर्भ्यां श्रवणादिभिः ।
नश्वरं गृह्यमाणं च विध्दि मायामनोमयम् ॥
(Srimad Bhagwat: 11.7.7)
‘This temporary world you think of, talk about, observe, hear and all that, you should recognize to be a deluding game of shadows capturing your imagination.’ I am imparting the Knowledge of Ultimate Truth to you. Imbibe it and then go to Badrikashram. Sit there silently in solitude and ask yourself, ‘Who am I? What is the essential nature of my real Self?’
The child asks, ‘What is this? What is that? Who is he? Who is she?’ No child in the world ever asked, ‘Who am I?’ The treasure of Self-Knowledge this question would have unearthed remains hidden.
Now start asking yourself, ‘Who am I?’ Do your duty and enjoy life by all means but ask yourself,‘Who am I?’
You may get the answer, “I am Mr. Ramanlal.”
But that is the name of your body. Who are you? The more intense the enquiry, the more sublime will be the experience. Ask this to yourself sitting in solitude in peaceful environs and do so fervently. The answer will not come in a few days, a weak or ten days. Sincere and sustained practice is required. And then the answer to the question will come from within you. The restlessness of your mind is gone; the imperfections and passions of your intellect are gone too and your body is absolutely relaxed. If you continue the practice of this sadhana sincerely for six months, you will attain to a state which can not be attained by other persons through other means even after six years. A bullock cart can not reach a place in six years where an aircraft can take you in six hours. The practice of Knowledge of Truth is journey by air.
Lord Krishna tells Uddhava, “Uddhava! Go to Badrikashram. Nobody belongs to anybody. Nobody has come with anybody nor will anybody depart with anybody else. You want to come with me. We have not come together. Both of us have come alone and will depart this world alone. But hear this Knowledge of Ultimate Truth from me. If you imbibe this Knowledge and practise it for some time, you will become one with me. Then there will be no misfortune of separation.”
Lord Krishna did not liberate Uddhava by placing his blessing hand on Uddhava’s head. The Lord imparted Knowledge of Truth to him and asked him to assimilate it, practise it and then experience it. Ruminants chew the food and store it in the first chamber of stomach. Then they return the partly digested food to the mouth and chew again. Similarly, you too should listen to satsang and reflect on it in solitude. One should spend ten times more time in manana (reflection) than the time spent in shravana (hearing the Upanishadic texts from a Self-realized Guru). And one should spend ten times more time in nididhyasana (contemplation) than the time spent in manana. I remained absorbed in my own Self during my stay at Disa. If I had started delivering lectures immediately after being blessed by Gurudev, I would not have attained success. You hear the satsang and then contemplate on it in seclusion.
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