18th April, 1937

Talk 404.

A casual visitor asked: What is nishta? How is the look to be directed between the eyebrows?
M.: How do we see these things? There is a light by which these are seen. Your question amounts to asking how that light is seen.

D.: What is the significance of the spot between the eyebrows?

Page 393
M.: That is mentioned as if to say: "Do not see with your eyes."
D.: What is regulation of breath for?
M.: Only to control the mind.

Again after a few minutes Sri Bhagavan continued: The mind functions both as light and as objects. If divested of things the light alone will remain over.

D.: But we must know that there is such light.
M.: Sight or cognition is impossible without such light. How do you cognise anything in sleep? Our cognition pertains to the present state because there is light. Light is the essential requisite for sight. It is plain in our daily life. Among the lights, sunlight is the most important. Hence they speak of the glory of millions of suns.

D.: There is light if we press the eyelids with our fingers. Another questioner: What is the use of seeing such a light?
M.: It is done lest we forget the goal. The practice helps one not to divert the attention to other pursuits. The object is seen or the light is recognised because there is the subject to do so. How does it affect the subject whether the objects are seen or not? If the light, i.e., the cogniser or the consciousness is seen, there will be no object to be seen. Pure light, i.e. , Consciousness, will alone remain over.

D.: Why then is the regulation of breath necessary?
M.: Control of breath or its regulation is only for controlling the mind so that the mind may not wander away.

D.: Is it for control of mind only?
M.: It is not enough that light is seen; it is also necessary to have the mind engaged in a single activity, e.g., the elephant trunk and the chain.

D.: How long will it take for one to gain Chintamani ^[?] (the celestial gem granting all the wishes of its owner)?

M.: The example of Chintamani is found in Yoga Vasishta. Chintamani

signifies the Real nature of the Self. The story is as follows:- A man was making tapasya for gaining Chintamani. A gem mysteriously fell into his hands. He thought that it could not be
Page 394
Chintamani because his efforts had been too short and too little to gain the gem. He discarded it and continued the tapas. Later a sadhu ^[?] placed before him a brilliant pebble with facets cut. The man was taken in by its appearance but found that it could not fulfil his desires as he originally supposed. Similarly, the Self, being inherent, should not be sought for elsewhere. Again, an elephant used to be often teased by its keeper. He once had an accident and fell down. The elephant could have killed him on the spot but did not do so. Later, however, the keeper dug a big pit in the forest and killed the elephant. Chudala illustrated Sikhidhvaja's error by this story. He had vairagya ^[?] even while ruling his kingdom and could have realised the Self if only he had pushed his vairagya to the point of killing the ego. He did not do it, but came to the forest, had a timetable of tapas and yet did not improve even after 18 years of tapas. He had made himself a victim of his own creation. Chudala advised him to give up the ego and realise the Self which he did and was liberated. It is clear from Chudala's story that vairagya accompanied by ego is of no value, whereas all possessions in the absence of ego do not matter.