The subject of today’s discourse is, “To Whom Do You Belong? Where Do You Come From?” These are eternal questions of the human mind. When human beings first came onto this earth, the first questions that confronted them were “To whom do I belong? Where do I come from? Where shall I go?” People have been researching the answers to these questions since time immemorial, but they have not always found the answers. When people ask questions just for the sake of asking, they usually do not find the proper answer. In order to get the correct answer, they have to realize the inner import of the questions – otherwise the questions will remain forever unanswered.

Some time ago I mentioned one poem of Tagore, in which he said,

Pratham diner súrya prashna karechila
Sattár nútan ávirbháve, Ke tumi?
Mele ni uttar.
Vatsar vatsar cale gela
Divaser sheś súrya shesh prashna uccárila
Paschim ságar tiire nistabdha sandhyáy
Ke tumi?
Pela ná uttar.

[In the sunrise of the first day, the question arose before the first emerging being – “Who are you?” There was no answer. Years and years passed by. The setting sun of the last day repeated the last question on the still evening of the western horizon, “Who are you?” Still there was no answer.]

I shall return to the source from where I came, in whom I exist, and who is that entity? Unless human beings discover the answer to the question, “To whom do you belong?” they cannot answer the question. “From where do you come?” The answer is that they belong to that supreme indestructible Entity. When He was unmanifest, he was in His eternal stance – His nityabháva. When He becomes manifest, He remains in His liilábháva, His playful stance. And when He is in the latter state, the microcosms come into the world.

Satyaloke nirákárá mahájyotisvarúpińii
Máyábalkalaḿ saḿtyajya dvidhábhinná yadonmukhii
Náyáccháditátmánaḿ canakárarúpińii
Shivashakti vibhágena jáyate srśt́ikalpaná.

This created world is composed of the Supreme Cognitive Principle and the Supreme Operative Principle: Shivashaktyátmakaḿ Brahma. When this Supreme Operative principle is in a dormant stage, nothing is created. But when according to the will of Parama Shiva, when the Operative Principle or Máyá is stirred, then Her dormant force is manifest Then the tremendous vital energy is stimulated to action, and this quinquelemental universe emerges.

Before this world was created, in the satyaloka [realm of truth] Prakrti was dormant, but there was tremendous unmanifested potentiality in Her. Even at that primordial stage satya or truth was present. Truth is not inseparable from anything – it will not be non-existent if such-and-such a thing is non-existent. Before human beings came onto this earth, there were solar and lunar eclipses even though there were no human beings to record those events. So truth is not inseparable from anyone or anything: its existence does not depend on anything else. It is self-manifest. What is truth? It is the recognized status of veracity.

Human beings came onto this earth about a million years ago. In this universe, our earth is not only the only planet, nor is the sun the only star. There are numerous stars and luminous bodies and planets. Wherever there is a proper balance amongst the five fundamental factors, there life has evolved. Various species of animals have evolved on various planets, are living today, will remain for some time, and in the future will disappear. History shows that so many animals roamed this earth with great prowess, but their strength gradually waned and they have become totally extinct. One day human beings will also be extinct on this planet. But this does not mean that they will become extinct on all other planets also. Before this earth becomes unfit for human habitation or faces a complete thermal death the developed human beings will travel to other planets. Thus they will never become completely extinct in this universe.

Out of the Macrocosmic Consciousness evolved solid matter. And due to cosmic attraction, the same matter, through various individual manifestations, is advancing towards Parama Puruśa. Perhaps the speed of movement varies with different entities: some are moving very fast, some slowly, some very slowly, but movement is a must for all. So no one should ever think that if anyone slips and stumbles on the ground, their movement is stopped forever. In fact, their movement will continue ceaselessly; it will never come to an end.

Those who have fallen today may become evolved people, great personalities in the future – mahápuruśas. This is why no one should ever be disappointed in life. Parama Puruśa is calling everyone and He will continue to call everyone: all shall find a safe shelter on His loving lap. He does not hate or neglect anyone. Hence the only answer to the question, “kasya tvam” – “Whom do you belong to?” – is: “I belong to Parama Puruśa, to Him and Him alone, because I have come from Him and I am in Him, and finally I will return to Him.” And the only answer to the question, “Kuta áyátah” – “From where have you come?” – is: “I have come from Parama Puruśa and I will go back to Him. He is my permanent abode.”

One of the names of Parama Puruśa is Shriinivása. Here the Saḿskrta word shrii means “the most charming personality.” The word shrii is derived from sha + ra + uniiś. Sha is the acoustic root of the mutative principle and ra is the acoustic root of energy. With the help of these two things, sha plus ra, human beings are moving, dancing, speaking and doing so many things. Obviously they need sha and ra very much. The supreme abode of this shrii is Parama Puruśa: hence He is affectionately called Shriinivása. To Him only all the living beings will return, either today or tomorrow. That is the supreme abode of bliss, the supreme culminating point – ánandadháma… parágati.

Very often people become victims of disappointment for the sole reason that they forget their goal of life. If they look towards their goal, then their disappointments and frustrations will cease. Whenever a human being is created, he or she comes within the Cosmic mind. So when the microcosms move towards Macrocosmic Consciousness, Parama Puruśa is watching: Parama Puruśa is with them holding their hands. It is the humans who do not look towards Him – this is their misfortune, not His. They may sometimes request Him to hold their hands and lead them towards the goal but even this is not necessary, because He is always holding them. The tragedy is that in their foolish effort to walk alone, people often stumble and fall down. This is not the fault of Parama Puruśa, for He is with everyone. This movement of Parama Puruśa with each individual is called His ota yoga: and when he looks upon the entire universe at a time collectively, it is called His prota yoga. Thus He is with the microcosms both in individual and collective association.

So the answer to the question, “Whom do you belong to?” is “I belong to Parama Puruśa.” And the answer to the question “From where have you come?” is “I have come from Parama Puruśa, from the nucleus of the universe, and finally I will return to Him, my permanent abode.”

Sarvájiive sarvasaḿsthe brhante
Tasmin haḿso brhámyate brahmacakre
Prthagátmánaḿ preritáraḿca matvá
Juśt́astatastenámrtatvameti.

All entities, living or non-living, are rotating around Parama Puruśa – some consciously, some unconsciously, – with so many thoughts and idiosyncrasies, so many bodies and structures. When will their movement come to an end? It will end only when they realize that Parama Puruśa and they themselves are one and inseparable; then will they become one with Parama Puruśa. The more sincerely people will follow the spiritual cult, the more their distance from Parama Puruśa will decrease; and when that distance becomes nil, the microcosms will merge in Macrocosmic Consciousness – jiiva will become Shiva. This is the parágati, the supreme culminating point of all microcosmic movement.