LH: Welcome to talk Asia, I'm Lorraine Hahn.This week we're talking with one of the world's foremost authoritieson the ancient traditions of yoga meditation. Swami Veda BharatiMaharaj has walked one of yoga's highest paths for most of his life.By the age of 13, he achieved a scholar's mastery of 20,000 yogamantras as well as fluency in Sanskrit grammar. During his 52 yearsof teaching, he has established 30 study centers around the world.He's got students from virtually all faiths and cultural backgroundsand he says that the practical benefits of yoga are extraordinaryboth for mind and body.
Swamiji, welcome to TalkAsia.
SVB: It's all my pleasure.
LH: Thank you. Thank you very much for comingin. I want to talk to you about yourself personally a bit later inthe show because there's so much to talk about as you know but first,let me talk to you about yoga. And just to get our viewers to have abetter understanding about yoga, what in your opinion are the keybenefits of studying yoga meditation?
SVB: The highest benefit, our ultimate goal is forone to know oneself. What are we? Beyond being about __, being anangry person or anxious person. Beyond being conditioned by ourpsychologies, is there something other than that which is my trueself, which is a pure being of light, life and consciousness. Andthen to learn to operate from there in our body movement, in ourdaily business, in a very busy life. How to maintain an attunement ofbeing that of something that is unconditioned and not touched by anyof this. All the rest is just auxiliary to that one goal.
LH: Is it physical? Is it mental?
SVB: It is all of them but the whole point is thatthe spiritual guides the mental. Mental guides the physical and notthe other way around. Most people go from the physical to the mentalto the spiritual but this journey of yoga is right from the very coreof your being and then from there to let it filter outwards to therest of the world.
LH: Swamiji, can anybody do yoga? Maybe somepeople may have an impairment or disability?
SVB: It has nothing to do with impairments. Theonly impairment we recognize is very serious psychopathic conditions.During which, we do not give the normal systems that we give to otherpeople. Otherwise, the youngest child is best. And the older people,even I have given lessons to dying people so that they can leave inpeace. Just go there and let the consiousness be shifted so that theyare not going through with fear and pain and suffering. So, anycondition, any situation. And above all, I have a title of a lectureI normally give and that is Speak only when you are in silence. Eatonly when you are fasting and Meditate on the run.
LH: That almost sounds like contradictions tome.
SVB: They're not contradictions. They'recomplimentary. They may sound more like Zen koans, but that is whatthe Zen Koans are made of or the Chinese traditions of Koans. Theyoga tradition, all of that unites then. They are not contradictions.While you are looking with your eyes you are thinking with your mindso while you're driving, instead of counting all the transgressionsof your neighbor, you could be counting the benefits that the Lordhas bestowed on you and keeping a very contemplative, meditativestate of mind.
LH: Swamiji, is there a difference thoughbetween somebody who meditates and let's say a meditation expert? Isthere a difference ?
SVB: It depends on who wants to advertise oneselfas a meditation expert. I don't advertise myself as a meditatingexpert. If I were a meditating expert, I would be a living Buddha.
LH: Who attends these training programs?
SVB: People from all walks of life. Catholics,Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, scientists, professionals,housewives, very young people. I teach children from the age of 2 or3.
LH: That must be interesting
SVB: Yes, that is the most interesting part. I canteach meditation to a 2 year old.
LH: And they can grasp the concept?
SVB: They do not need to grasp the concept. Thestates of mind are not taught. The states of mind are caught.
LH: So I presume with a child, then theinnocence is there. Is that right Swamiji?
SVB: Their minds are not filled with all thecobwebs. All you have to do, what I do is, with a little child is Itake meditation shawl and I hold the child like this…and hecatches the state of mind. Mothers can teach that. The best time toteach a meditation to a child is during 9 months of pregnancy.
LH: How do they do that Swamiji?
SVB: Whatever state of mind the mother maintains,passes into the child and then after that, what they have notcompleted, the work they have not completed during the 9 months, theycan complete when they have the child suckling on the breasts. Whatdoes the mother do with her breathing during that time, what does shedo with her mind at that time? The child catches that sentiment, thatemotion. If the mother is breathing shallow, the child learns tobreathe shallow. We teach the mothers to breathe deep and relax andpass on that state of mind to the child.
LH: Swamiji, what if about somebody, well maybemyself for example. I'm a busy person like many others here. If Idon't have time enough to devote to yoga as much, how would youadvise me?
SVB: You are a busy person, no doubt. But I'lltell you one thing; I'm more busy than you are.
LH: That is true, when you travel 9 months ofthe year.
SVB: 9 months of the year. And whatever little Ihave achieved. Half of it has been achieved sitting at Americanairports. There is plenty of time. There is time when you are waitingbetween appointments; there is time when you are standing at a stopwaiting for your car to drive up. There is time when you are waitingfor an airplane; we just don't recognize that we have time forourselves.
LH: And during that time Swamiji, what should Ido?
SVB: OK…I think towards the end of thissession, we are going to lead all our viewers through 4-5 minutes orwhatever length of time we have available and I'll show them whatthey can do with that time. But that is just one step, very beginningstep I'll lead them through and all of your viewers or a large numberof them will feel an affect right there and then.
LH: I look forward to that Swamiji. We're goingto take a short break, please stay with us. TalkAsia will be rightback.
LH: Welcome back to TalkAsia, we're continuingour conversation with Swami Veda Bharati. He's one of the world'sforemost scholars on yoga and meditation. Swami Jii, you mentionedabout the various students that come to your meditation centersaround the world, they could be Catholics; they could be old, youngetc. Talk to me about the Asian cultures, are there particular Asiancultures that are more receptive for example to your teachings?
SVB: I have as yet not found any person in anyculture, from any faith, cynics, scientists, skeptics who has notresponded to my 5 minutes of meditation, who has not felt a change ofthe state of mind. But yes I do find that people of Asia respond, allpeople of Asia respond to it much more naturally.
LH: Why is that?
SVB: Because it has been ingrained for thousandsof years. But I would not exclude all western people. People do notrealize that in the west also there is a very, very strong meditativeand contemplative tradition. And in fact, I have among my collectionof three to four thousand hours of audiotapes of my course andlectures. I have something like 50 hours on meditation from theBible.
LH: Let me take another e-mail question foryou. This one is from Cheryl from Singapore. She asks, 'Which yogamantra has a special meaning for you?' That's a tough one isn't it?
SVB: All right…I'll tell you. There is one inthe introduction to which, a question is asked. Do I have to gothrough all these exercises and learn 30 ways of mental exercisesdone in the corpse positions and 96 ways of controlling the breathrhythms and spend life after life after life doing all of thesepractices before I'll reach my goal? Or is there a shorter way?
LH: A faster way.
SVB: A faster way. A short cut. Yes, bysurrendering to the awareness to the presence of God, to invoke thegrace. You may spend hours, years, centuries, doing all kinds ofpractices and if grace has not been consort because you think you cando it all by yourself, then nothing will happen. So the sutra thatdeals with that grace, by practicing the presence of divinity, evenhere, even in this studio, now. That is the short cut and that is myfavorite sutra in the very, very first chapter.
LH: I have never heard Sanskrit. Would youkindly share with me a very short version maybe of a sutra you justmentioned?
SVB: (Quotes in Sanskrit) 'One-way is practicingthe presence of divinity'.
LH: Sounds beautiful. Sounds beautiful.Swamiji, in the Muslim religion for example, Arabic is used as theso-called best language to study Islam. Is there a language, a sourcelanguage for let's say yoga?
SVB: OK…the source language is Sanskrit.There are many texts in Pali also but if you are going to depend onlyon a language, then you will never go to that definition ofmeditation, which we call wordless prayer. Language remains anintellectual exercise. When I teach the Muslims to meditate, I usethe sofee systems, and when I teach a Christian, I give a Christianphrase. Wherever you are, even now, if I was not keeping an interiorsilence, I would be talking like this.
LH: *laughs* ...very much, very much so.
SVB: Ok, so you can practice a state of silence,while speaking, our earlier reference to what seemed like acontradiction.
LH: Swamiji, I mentioned that you knew many,many dialects, many, many languages. Seven and a half, you memorized4000 sutras I read, all this in a relatively short time. Is thisbecause of meditation or are you just a very clever man?
SVB: No I'm not clever. I'm not clever. I am verystupid, I assure you. Those who are around me will tell you that,will confirm it. Among yogis, there are married people, there areinitiates. A few, very few married people who still know the secretsof the tradition. My father taught me meditation and I sat with himfor one hour of meditation at the age of four and a half. So hetaught me the ways of using the mind. What is happening in theeducation system today is that children are made to cram, do rotelearning. They are not taught to use the mind for the purpose oflearning. We have certain methods in meditation by which one can lookat something once and know it. It is very relaxed kind ofconcentration. We call it a practice known as 'yoga nidra' ('yogicsleep'). A conscious rest. Resting all the rest of the mind, and onlythat portion that is required, for that particular intent, for thatparticular intention.
LH: Last question before we take another breakSwamiji. Was there any time in your life where your teachings andyour beliefs were tested? That you really got angry and you reallythought, this is not right.
SVB: I used to be very angry actually, earlier inmy life. I used to be very angry, very quick to anger and then I readthe autobiography of Gandhi, then that had a great impact. Then whenmy own spiritual guide and master Swami Rama of the Himalayas cameonto the scene, he would deliberately try to make me angry and themoment that I would get excited he would say, " Stay Calm". So hetrained me and then re-trained me. A wise man is he who, or a wisewoman is she who, in the presence for the causes of agitation doesnot re-act with agitation. But that will not.happen if you repress,it will happen only if you evoke from within. That very positiveplace that is with us, with all times, just bringing it out, that isall it takes. Being aware.
LH: Understood. Swamiji, we're going to takeanother short break. We'll be right back. Stay with us, with Swamiji,here on TalkAsia. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
LH: This is TalkAsia we are in the finalmoments of our conversation with Swami Veda Bharati. Swamiji, now forthe question of the week. This one is from Michele in Hong Kong. Shewould like to know, 'what does a Swami believe about life and death'.
SVB: I would say that I believe in the eternity ofthe life principle. Not after, not before. It has no beginning, ithas no end. It is always ever the same, ever pure, ever wise, everfree. Names and conditions that we attribute to it and we call thembodies. The yogi learns to die consciously?
LH: What do you mean by that?
SVB: He does not die involuntarily. He says mywork is done, time to migrate. And he knows the methods wherebytogether the conciousness, attune it to whatever his knowledge ofdivinity is and then…go wherever he has to go.
LH: Swamiji, would you share with us, not onlyme but with my viewers. A few moments of how we could actually dothis meditation.
SVB: Wherever you are, right now make no formaleffort of any kind. Simply bring your awareness to the place whereyou are sitting. Be aware of yourself from head to toe. If your eyesclose, let them close by themselves, lightly and simply relax yourforehead.
Just relax your forehead, be still and bring yourawareness to your breathing. Only bring the awareness to yourbreathing. Do nothing with your breath, only follow how the breath isflowing.
Pick a name of God or a name of the Buddha orYahweh or the name of Jesus, in your language, according to yourtradition. Exhaling, think in your mind that name without a break.Inhaling, think that name. Observe how the breaths, the mind and thename are flowing together as a single stream. Continue to feel theflow.
Maintaining the awareness of the flow. Gently openyour eyes but continue to feel the flow even with your eyes open. Doyou feel any change in the state of your mind? A little calmness?
LH: Yup.
SVB: See your voice has changed.
LH: Really?
VB: Become calmer.
LH: Swamiji, thank you very much. I'll try andpractice this as often as I can.
SVB: It can be done anytime, anywhere. Very, veryfirst lesson, first few vowels of the alphabet of meditation we havestarted.
LH: Swamiji, thank you very much for your timeand your teachings, Swamiji.
SVB: All my pleasure.
LH: Well, I've been speaking with Swami VedaBharati, one of the world's foremost authorities on yoga meditation.Now, you can e-mail me a note if you'd like, the address istalkasia@cnn.com. Now you know, I do read them. Keep watching ourwebsite cnn.com/talkasia for guest updates. I'm Lorraine Hahn, let'stalk again, next week.
Copyright 2002 Swami Veda Bharati/CNNTV.