The Synthesis of Yoga - Super school Auroville - The Synthesis of Yoga 503

Now comes the elucidation. If you were able to sit at the feet of Sri Aurobindo directly then perhaps this elucidation will not be necessary. He would look into your eyes and knowledge is given. That was the power of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. They could look into you and give you, without speaking even. There is a beautiful sentence in the Upanishads: “Here are the teachers. When the teachers are young and the pupils are old. And the teacher teaches without speaking.” In complete silence, what is to be given is given. This is the right method of learning and teaching. The teachers are always young whatever their age, why? Because where there is knowledge there is freshness. Where there is freshness there is youth. Pupils are obscure and ignorant therefore they are old. There is no freshness. But even the old become young. This is the promise of the teacher: the old become young. Because when knowledge is poured they flower. Youth comes, they bloom. All life begins to course. You become powerful. That is what happens, when you read Sri Aurobindo particularly, you find this electric effect upon you being. So now let us read.

“The usual agency of this revealing is the Word, the thing heard.” You must read these sentences of Sri Aurobindo with the same silence with which they have been uttered. When there is a complete silence and even a small sound — one little sound is the word. Sri Aurobindo does not says books and words, he only says Word. “The usual agency of this revealing is the Word…” That is a concession given to us. We are so told, we are so deaf, so unseeing, so weak, so feeble that although everything can be told to you in a silence you cannot hear. It is not revealed because we are so old, we cannot receive the revelation. So a concession is made by the teacher. But the concession is made only by uttering one word. That gives you a vibration. Brahman. Many teachers in the Upanishads speak only one word: Brahman. Brahman means the Supreme. Or they use the word Aum. It is only one word: Aum. And that is enough. It is that which unseals the ears, ears which have become deaf. And this deafness is removed by the word Aum. And there is such a tremendous awakening. It is said: “Whether you believe in God or not the moment you are told: ‘God exists’ your life cannot be as before.” Simply you are told “God exist”, simply — no argument, no embellishment, no repetition. If somebody tells you: “God exists” after hearing these words your life cannot be as before. You are troubled. The moment you are told, “God exists” you have to prove that God does not exist. You cannot rest where you are. And the moment you try to prove that God does not exist you are caught more and more into God. You have to be concerned with God. You have to wrestle with God. You have to deny him, reject him and you have to make a great effort to reject him. How can you reject him? Wherever you look around there is Brahman. How much will you reject? What will you reject? Whatever you say: “That does not exist” still that exists. It mocks at you, it laughs at you at every moment. Everything in the world reveals God. Even if you say that he does not exist, there in itself who is saying “He does not exist”? If you say: “You are saying”, who are you? You are nothing but the image of Him. If you analyse yourself when you say: “I deny God” who is this I? The moment you deny God, you have to say: “I am denying God” and the moment you say: “I am denying god” who is this I? I is He — the objective figure of Him. You cannot be without Him. In every denial He is present. So the moment you hear the words: “God exists” this is called in India sruti. The power of sruti, you hear -- Sruti means that which is heard. It is also called sruta. The agency of revealing to you is the Word, even if you are not totally aware, even if you don’t become awakened. The beginning of awakening starts with one word: Aum, Brahman.

“The Word may come to us from within…” Sometimes it happens in the complete silence of your being the word is suddenly heard. It may not happen to many but there are many people for whom the word is heard from within. It may come to us from without. This is more often -- somebody tells us. “But in either case, it is only an agency for setting the hidden knowledge to work.” Hidden knowledge, forgotten knowledge, you begin to remember. The moment the word comes to you, you can no more remain what you were before. The work of revelation starts immediately. Once you hear: “God exists” finished! You are caught already. Either to affirm or to deny in either case you are caught. And the dialogue starts and you will not rest until He is known.

“The word within may be the utterance of the inmost soul in us which is always open to the Divine; or it may be the word of the secret and universal Teacher who is seated in the hearts of all.” Either your own soul speaks out or the Lord who is seated in us — he tells you. These are mystic experiences in which you hear and if you learn how to be very, very, very quiet you will be able to hear. At the right moment the right word will come. For that we have to learn to be very, very, very quiet. “The teacher who is seated in the hearts of all.” The Universal Teacher is called jagat guru — guru means the teacher, jagat means of the world. There is a jagat guru who is the teacher of all. You don’t require a human teacher. If a human teacher is required it is only a concession: just as the word is a concession because without the word, through silence, the knowledge can be revealed. But the word is a concession; we are so deaf that sometimes shouting is necessary. So the word is heard. Similarly the teacher is always present in you. You don’t need an outer teacher and if an outer teacher is needed it is only a concession. Because you are not able to see the Universal Teacher seated in you, therefore the outer teacher who represents him may come and teach you. It is a concession. Before in India there was a system to have no teacher but to regard the Universal Teacher as your teacher. There is an Eternal Teacher in us; there is a Universal Teacher, for all of us the same teacher. He is a master who knows everyone because everyone is nothing but himself. So he knows everyone and he knows how to deal with each one. So at the right moment he gives the right word. Sometimes there are good disciples who go to an outer teacher just as a concession. They don’t need an outer teacher. But for the sake of obeying the tradition that you must go to a teacher, they go to a teacher. There is an interesting story of Sri Krishna. It is said that Sri Krishna knew the Universal Teacher seated within himself but because tradition said that you should go and seek a teacher he went to a teacher. His name was Ghora — ghora means intense. And he said: “Give me knowledge.” And the teacher spoke only one line. It is written: “The teacher spoke one line and Krishna knew.” All knowledge was revealed — one line!

“Udwayam tamasaspari swaha pashyanta uttaram devam devatra surya maganma jyotir uttamam” (Rig Veda) this is the one line that was uttered by Ghora. “We went beyond the darkness and saw the higher light and then we went still farther and gained the Supreme knowledge.” This is the meaning of this sentence. The moment Krishna was told it all knowledge was remembered; everything was known. This is what the Chandogya Upanishad tells us. It is a short story but extremely important, very interesting. How Krishna, who knew already, followed the tradition to go to a teacher, so that the teacher may teach him and the teacher simply uttered the word and he knew. There was no need for him to learn further.