Go Beyond the Mind from Amritapuri 31 July 2006

August 10, 2006

(I don't recall seeing this posted on our satsang-list yet, although it

speaks directly to the question of asking the Guru questions to clear

doubts. Sorry if it's a double-post. FYI there is an interesting picture

on the website with this article of Amma holding the microphone. And also

photo updates from yesterday of the Rakhi rituals. Here in Flushing the sky

*is* actually thundering and lightning, Prajnaji. love prashanti)

http://www.amritapuri.org/amma/2006/607beyondmind.php

Go Beyond The Mind

31 July 2006 — Amritapuri

Amma had been giving darshan in North America for two months. Regardless,

the day after her return to Amritapuri, she promptly came to the temple to

give her first meditation and question-and-answer session with the ashram

residents.

When Amma is in Amritapuri, the brahmacharins and householder devotees who

live here can easily come to her for answers to their questions and to have

any doubts cleared. But with Amma travelling more than six months out of the

year, there are many times when one has to wait until Amma's return to ask

something.

This was the case for one American woman living in Amritapuri. Her question

was waiting on Amma's *peetham* when Amma entered the temple.

During the woman's meditations, she had been having various experiences, and

she wanted to know how to take them: "Amma, what sort of attitude and

understanding should one have to the various experiences one undergoes

during meditation? How much does one's mental attitude affect how we

experience these? For instance, at one time it might be a joyous experience

of motherly love and, at another time, something very impersonal, like

forces of nature, like little flashes of lightning and strong gusts of wind

acting upon one's beingâ€¦ What role does the Guru play in all of this? Why

do many people go insane or become delusional and egoistic and only a few

safely make it to the Goal?"

Amma told the woman that such experiences arise out of innocence. And that

although one can take encouragement from such experiences, that they should

not be given much importance.

"Because of one's innocence one may have such experiences; one may feel

motherly love, see divine lights or feel a cool breezeâ€¦ But you should go

beyond all such experiences," Amma said. "You are on the path to realizing

your oneness with God, with the Self. While travelling on a path, we see

many things around us. But if we stop to see these things and forget our

goal, we may never reach the goal."

Amma said that all experiences are at the level of the mind and that the

goal of spiritual life is to go beyond the mind. She said ultimately such

experiences are much like dreams and, as such, they should only be given the

same importance as a dream.

"The real important thing is the control we have over our mind in all

situations," Amma said. "If someone becomes angry at us, we should not react

and become angry also. We should reflect, â€˜Whom am I becoming angry at?'

In such situations we should remember that it is all the Atma, the Supreme

Self. We should think, â€˜The consciousness that is within me is within that

person also. Can consciousness become angry? And if all is one, to whom can

it express its anger?' We should give more importance to the Self and not

the body."

In response to the part of the woman's question regarding the Guru's role in

such experiences, Amma said that the Guru is like a mirror, reflecting

whatever mental shortcomings one has. Amma said, "When you find yourself

reacting in a negative way to different situations, you should contemplate

upon the workings of your own mind, remind yourself of the Goal, and then

rectify your behaviour. We should take every situation that comes in life as

an opportunity for us to learn."

Amma then explained how dangerous it is for someone to focus on and pursue

mystic experiences in spiritual life. Amma said that when people get hung up

on the pursuit of experiences, they often squander their entire lives

wandering from place to place looking for places where the "energy feels

good." Others fall victim to spiritual entrepreneurs, who charge, say,

$5000, to turn one into an avatar. "With the $5000, they say you can become

an avatar after a three-week course. But without the money, it won't

happen," Amma said. "In a search for newness, for new experiences, people go

and follow all these things."

Amma then said that charging money for teaching meditation, etc. is like a

mother asking her child for payment for breast milk.

Amma said, in fact, liberation is not something one can be given; it must

come from within: "If the ancient sages had to do austerities for ages in

order to realize that state, how then could one get it just by paying

someone some money?" Amma derided.

"When we eat sugar, we experience the sweetness. But we still are different

from the sugar. We shouldn't be an experiencer, we should become That, we

should become the sugar, we should become the sweetness."

Once again stressing how the balance of mind during all experiences is much

more important than what the mind actually experiences, Amma quoted the Gita

"samatvam yoga ucyate" * "Maintaining equanimity of mind in all situations

should be our focus. It verily is the goal," Amma said.

In response to the part of the woman's question regarding people falling

from the spiritual path, Amma said that the most important thing to do if

one falls is to get back up and continue on. "There are many, many trees,

and there can be many, many flowers on a tree. But not all the flowers

become fruits. Some may fall away, others may wither, some may be eaten by

insects. Along the spiritual path, there may be many falls, but if one does

fall, the important thing is to not remain there, lying on the ground,

enjoying the situation. You must get up and put in effort to walk further.

Whatever effort you put in on this path will never be lost. You always have

it with you. To realize our oneness with God may take our entire lifetime—it

may take *several* lifetimes. You have to put in continuous effort. There is

no other way. Everyone has to walk this one path. If you come upon an

obstacle, you have to surmount it.

"Donâ€™t focus on fleeting experiences," Amma reiterated. "The things we see

(pertaining to experiences mentioned in the question) are at the level of

the mind. We should go beyond the mind."

—Sakshi

*yoga-stah kuru karmani samgam tyaktva dhananjaya

siddhyasiddhyoh samo bhutva samatvam yoga ucyate

(Bhagavad Gita 2nd chapter, verse 48)

[Remaining steadfast in yoga, Oh! Dhananjaya [Arjuna], perform actions,

abandoning attachment, remaining the same to gain and loss alike. This

equanimity of mind is called yoga.]

August 10, 2006

Thank you for posting this!

-

"Prashanti " <ammasprashanti >

Thursday, August 10, 2006 4:20 PM

"Go Beyond the Mind" from Amritapuri 31 July 2006