Mind, unit mind, is a creation of matter, and matter is a creation of Cosmic Mind. When the Cosmic Entity within Its mind creates this pillow within It as an external material entity, we think it is actually a pillow, but for the [Macrocosm] it is His mental creation. You can create something in your mind; in your mind you can create an elephant; for you that elephant is a mental entity. But if in your mind you create a mahout for that elephant, then for your mental mahout, your mental elephant is not something mental. It is something concrete, something physical. So the elephants we see in this world are for Him mental entities, but for us, external physical entities. Do you follow?

So this is His process of conation. Now, from this quinquelemental world come the microcosms, and after their creation, these microcosms are to live within the Macrocosm, within the mind of the Supreme Self. They cannot function, they cannot remain, without the mind of the Macrocosm, so they will have to remain within it, and they will have to move within it.

It has been said in the Vedas,

Sarvájiive sarvasaḿsthe brhante;
Tasmin haḿso bráhmyate Brahmacakre.

[All unit entities, all unit structures, revolve around the Nucleus Consciousness in the Cosmic Cycle of creation.]

This microcosm, or these microcosms, are moving within the scope of the Macrocosm and around the nucleus of this Macrocosm. The mind of this Macrocosm is so vast, but there is a controlling point within His mind, and that point is the hub of His mind, is the nave of His mind, is the nucleus of His mind. This Cosmological nucleus, the nucleus of this Cosmological order, is called Puruśottama in Sanskrit, and these created microcosms are moving around this Puruśottama with their own peculiar radii. Each and every microcosm has its own radius. And that is why no two microcosms are the same. The microcosm of Mr. X and the microcosm of Mr. Y are not the same, because both of them are moving around this Cosmological Hub, but they have got their own radius. And because of the difference in their radii, they are different.

Now you know, wherever there is any existence, there is a particular system in it. Everybody, every entity, will have to obey a particular system, and this system is its property, is its dharma, is its wont. And we can feel or understand a particular entity according to its dharma, or property, according to its peculiar radius. Why does water have its drenching property? Because of its peculiar radius. Why does fire have its burning property? Because of its peculiar radius.

Now, there is system everywhere, in each and every entity. And if by artificial process, if by scientific process, we can change the radius, we can change the curvature, then a particular element will be converted into another element. By such artificial process we can change gold into mercury, we can transform platinum into radium; everything is possible by changing the radius and by changing the wavelength. And wherever there is any such system, that is, an entity moving around a nucleus, you know two forces are functioning there – one is centripetal and the other is centrifugal. Even in the smallest atomic system, around that nucleus electrons are moving. And when the electrons are moving, certainly these two forces are functioning there, the centripetal force and the centrifugal force: the centre-seeking force – the concentric force – and the eccentric force. And you know in our ethereal system also, this earth is the nucleus, and the moon is moving around this earth. There also these two forces are functioning. In a bigger system, in our solar system, the sun is the nucleus, and so many planets are moving around the sun. There also these two forces are functioning; and each and every planet has its own radius.

Now, the biggest system is our Cosmological system, the Cosmological order. The campus of this Cosmological order is the expressed universe, or Saguńa Brahma, and the nucleus of this Cosmological order is Puruśottama. So each and every microcosm is moving around this Puruśottama with its own radius.

Now here also, in the case of the Cosmological Hub and microcosms moving around this Cosmological Hub, these two forces are functioning, kendrátigá and kendránugá, eccentric and concentric. In the case of this Cosmological order, the centripetal force is called vidyá shakti, and the other force is called avidyá shakti.

What is vidyá and what is avidyá? There is a fight between sentient and static; and when as a result of this fight between sentient and static, the resultant goes in favour of the sentient, we say it is the resultant sentient principle, we say it is vidyá shakti. And when as a result of this fight the resultant goes in favour of the static principle, we say it is avidyá shakti.

Now you know, these two shaktis, that is vidyá shakti and avidyá shakti, have their own effect on the human mind, on the microcosm, and when a microcosm is influenced by avidyá shakti, it always tries to go away from the Hub, and tries to keep itself covert so that the Cosmological Hub may not be able to see it. Puruśottama is seeing everything, witnessing everything; but when a person is propelled by the force of avidyá, that microcosm tries to go away from the Hub, that is, increase its radius, and tries to keep itself covert, concealed, hidden from the Cosmological Hub. It thinks, “When I am doing this thing, perhaps the Cosmological Hub, Puruśottama, is not seeing me, is not able to see me.” This sort of idea is guided by this sort of thinking. Now, the first idea, that is, to fly away, to move away, from the Hub, is called vikśepa shakti. And to try to hide oneself from that Supreme “I” [perhaps meaning also “Supreme Eye”] is called ávarańii shakti. Avarańa means “to cover”.

And similarly, when the human mind is influenced by vidyá shakti, what happens? All of a sudden it feels that “I should do something. I have a human structure. I am a human being. I should do something. I should act like a human being. I should try to goad myself to the realm of divinity, it is my dharma. I should follow dharma, I should strictly adhere to the code of dharma.” This idea is a gift of vidyá shakti, and this particular expression of vidyá shakti is called saḿvit shakti. Conscience, when it is roused all of a sudden, is called saḿvit. “I should do something, I should do something.” As soon as it comes in contact with saḿvit shakti, in the next moment you feel, “I should do something practical. Theory won’t help me; I should do something concrete, I should do something practical.” And when this desire to do something practical is created in the mind, this created force is called hládinii shakti or Rádhiká shakti. With the help of this Rádhiká shakti one can move towards that Cosmological Nave.

The Cosmological Nave is called Krśńa, because He attracts everything. Krśńa means “the supreme charmer”, “the supreme attracter”, who attracts everybody towards Him with the help of His – what? His supreme flute. That supreme flute is Krśńa. He creates universal acoustic waves, and those waves bring people towards Him; that is why He is called Krśńa. And microcosms come in contact with Krśńa with the help of that particular expression of sentient vidyá shakti which is known as Rádhiká shakti. And when with the help of Rádhiká shakti the microcosm comes in contact with the nave Krśńa Puruśottama, then we say it is the union of Krśńa and Rádhá. (Krśńa is not a male being of Vrindavan, and Rádhá is not a lady. You should understand it properly.) Now, this Rádhiká shakti is the cogitative faculty, the subject matter of today’s discourse; it is the cogitative faculty, and it is the divine force, and it is the devotional principle, it is devotion.

Now, one may say, “I understand everything, and I feel that devotion is something heavenly, is a heavenly entity – but how can I get it?” Now, human expressions, human entities (and not only human entities, all entities) are moving from imperfection towards perfection. This never-ending endeavour to move from imperfection towards perfection, from limitation towards the Unlimited Entity, this supreme mysticity, is life. It is a never-ending process, a never-ending march. And that is why it has been said, a life is a constant effort to restore an unstable equilibrium.

Now in this march of life – and particularly in human life – there are three kinds of expression; and those three expressions, or those three factors, are jiṋána, karma and bhakti. Bhakti is the supreme one. And how to acquire bhakti, how to get bhakti? The simple formula is, karma minus jiṋána is equal to bhakti. Suppose there is a Mr. X. Mr. X has no jiṋána, he is illiterate; but he has rendered two hundred degrees of service, selfless service, to society. So in his stock of karma there is two hundred; and jiṋána is zero, nil; two hundred minus zero is equal to two hundred – he acquires two hundred degrees of bhakti. And suppose that Mr. P.K. Nair is a learned man, MA in ten subjects; and he has five hundred degrees of jiṋána. In order for him to acquire two hundred degrees of bhakti, he will have to acquire – five hundred plus two hundred – seven hundred degrees of karma. He will have to render so much selfless karma, selfless service, to the society.

An illiterate fellow acquires two hundred degrees of bhakti by rendering two hundred degrees of karma. But that learned man has to render seven hundred degrees of karma in order to acquire two hundred degrees of bhakti. So in his case, jiṋána is nothing but a liability. A liability! And that is why you will sometimes see people who are illiterate, [completely] illiterate, but who have developed bhakti easily.

So the formula is, karma minus jiṋána is equal to bhakti. You must remember it. Now, this bhakti is Rádhiká shakti, this bhakti is the cogitative faculty. In the Vedas it has been said, Náyamátmá pravacanena labhyah – “You cannot get that Supreme Entity by tall talk.” Na medhayá – “Not by your intellect.” Na bahuná shrutena – “Nor by reading or going through so many books or lectures.”

Yamevaeśa vrńute tena labhya,
Stasyaeśa átmá vivrńute tanúḿ svám.

[The Supreme Entity is attainable only if that Entity, by Its grace, reveals Itself to the aspiring soul.]

Your progress in the realm of spirituality, in the realm of intuitionality, depends on His divine grace – just say His special divine grace. The Vedas say that it depends on divine grace, Guru krpá.

What is krpá? You know, Ramakrishna Paramahansa was not a learned man in the mundane sense. Once upon a time a very learned man said, “Oh, Ramakrishna, people say everything depends on His krpá.” (What is the local pronunciation? Krpá? Krpá? Krpá? [pronounced in three ways]) “So, what is the meaning of krpá?”

Ramakrishna said, “You know, I am an illiterate fellow, but according to my view, krpá is made of two syllables, kr and pá. Kr means Karo, karo, karo – ‘Do, do, do – Do your sádhaná, do your sádhaná, do your sádhaná.’ And pá means Páo – ‘Get’. ‘Get it, get it, get it, get it.’ That is, ‘Get it by doing sádhana’ – Kr-pá.”

And I say, that divine bliss, that divine krpá, that divine compassion, is always being showered upon you, on each and every living being, on each and every animate and inanimate object – but you do not feel it, you are not being drenched by that divine water, you are not being drenched by that divine shower, because you are holding the umbrella of vanity upon your head. If you want to be drenched by that divine shower of krpá, you have to remove the umbrella of vanity from your head; just remove it and be drenched. And what is sádhaná? Sádhaná is just the action of removing this umbrella from upon my head.

The Supreme Self, the Hub, is very near; He is within yourself, because the microcosmic hub and the Macrocosmic Hub are the same. Sútre mańigańá iva [“Like jewels strung together”] – so many hubs of so many flowers touch the same thread in a garland. Have you seen it? The hubs of so many flowers are touched by the same thread. And this supreme thread is called the vaejayantiimálá of Lord Krśńa. Sútre mańigańá iva. He is near you, but you cannot feel Him, because you are holding that umbrella of vanity. And if you remove that umbrella of vanity, what will be your experience? You will feel that He is with you, just like

Tileśu taelaḿ dadhiniiva sarpi,
Rápah srotahsvarańiiśu cágnih;
Evamátmátmani grhyate’sao,
Satyenaenaḿ tapasá yo’nupashyati.

[He lies hidden in everything, like oil in sesame seeds, like butter in milk, like water in dry streambeds, like fire in flint. Only those who adhere strictly to truth, and perform spiritual practices, can churn the mind and realize the Supreme Entity out of it.]

There is oil in til [sesame], but in order to get the oil, what will you have to do? You will have to press the til. And in that case, what will happen? The oil and the impurities will be separated. Because He is hidden, He lies covert, within your mind. Just press it by sádhaná. Then He, that is, Puruśottama, and your mental impurities, will be separated.

Dadhiniiva sarpi – “he is just like ghee hidden in the curd.” If you want to get the ghee, the sarpi, to the surface, what will you have to do? You will have to churn the [curd]. And after churning, what will happen? The butter and the impurities will be separated. The impurities of the [curd] are called takra in Sanskrit. In a shloka it has been said,

Mathitvá caturo vedán sarvashástráń caeva hi;
Sárantu yogibhih piitaḿ takraḿ pivanti pańd́itáh.

[When the Vedas and all the scriptures are churned, the essence of all knowledge is assimilated by the yogis, and the non-essential portion is eaten by the pandits.]

“So many scriptures, so many shástras, are just like oceans of milk, or oceans of curd. And after churning this ocean, what will happen? The átmá, that is, the butter, and the impurities, will be separated. And those who are yogis, those who are practical sádhakas, will enjoy that butter, and the pańd́its, mahámopádhyaya, smrititiirtha, kávyatiirtha [inflated titles of Sanskrit scholars], will quarrel with those impurities! But the sádhakas will enjoy [the butter].” This ocean of your mind is that [curd]. After churning the mind you will get that butter, and when you will get that butter, you will feel that unknowingly that butter has been taken away by Krśńa. That Mákhancora⁽¹⁾ has taken away that butter from you without your knowledge. That is why He is the supreme Mákhancora. He takes away the butter from you without your knowledge.

Dadhiniiva sarpi rápah srotaśu [“like butter in milk, like water in dry streams”]. In winter or in summer you will see that in the case of seasonal rivers – not ice-fed rivers but seasonal rivers – there is nothing but sand. The river is just like a desert. But there is water, there is a subterranean flow of water, within it. If you want to get water in winter from a small rivulet, what are you to do? You are to remove the sand. And if you remove the sand, you will see that there is a subterranean flow of water, clear and filtered water.

Footnotes

(1) Krśńa is sometimes called Mákhancora, Butter Thief, in allusion to a mythological story that as a small child he stole butter. The author here explains the allegory of that story. –Eds.