Sage Yajnavalkya in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad -5. Swami Krishnananda

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07/02/2020.
Post -5.
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1.


Can anybody contain all things inside oneself and be at rest?

#It is not possible even to hear these things. These admonitions and teachings are damaging to the egoistic individuality which locates the self inside the body only. Enough of it.

Can you imagine that your self is sitting in the most distant stars?

Can you imagine that you yourself are the stars, you are shining as the far-off luminary, and 'I am the Self'?

#You are not seeing the stars; you yourself are the stars. You are the sky; therefore the sky is not extended. The moment you say sky is extended, it becomes an object. But you yourself are the space – then the spatial characteristic of space vanishes.

If you go on drumming this into your ears, and go on racking your head, scratching yourself – how is it possible? Is it possible?

#You will find this is not possible. This is why preliminary qualifications are prescribed: Viveka, Vairagya, Shatsampatti, Mumukshutva – discrimination, dispassion, the six virtues and longing for liberation. These preliminary qualifications are necessary.

#If anyone is distracted in the direction of anything else than the Self, then the Self will hide itself fully away somewhere.

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2.

#There are very great things in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad which should not be read by impure minds. 

With these subtle longings, we should not go to the Upanishads to seek, "let me see if I can find something there." You should not experiment with these things. You should say, "I shall find it." 

#The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad is a supermarket – you can find anything there. 

#It is a forest, a large, large forest of knowledge – Brihadaranyaka. It is aranyaka, a forest of knowledge. That also, brhat very large, impregnable forest for every kind of knowledge. 

#Very vast : it will take one year to say anything about this book. Even one year is not sufficient. You are touching the Self, that is the most important thing. 

#You can touch anything and go scot-free, but we cannot touch the Self and go like that. It will do some mischief afterwards.

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3.

"Do not talk much about it," Yajnavalkya tells some of the questioners in the assembly of Sage Janaka. "Do not talk much about it." And one Shakalya went on arguing, "Where is its location, where is it located? Where is the heart located? 

Yajnavalkya said "Hey, don't ask too much lest your head may fall off." "Tell me the great Purusha that is declared in the Upanishads. If you don't understand this, your head will fall just now." 

#And he did not know the Purusha in the Upanishads that well, and robbers took the head away.

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To be continued ...

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