
Yogaswami Sri Lanka (1872 - 1964) The Words of the Master Collected by His four disciples: Markandu Swami A. Chellathurai Sandaswami M. Sri Khanta
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia

Yogaswami

Sri Lanka
(1872 - 1964)
The Words of the Master

Collected by
His four disciples:
Markandu Swami
A. Chellathurai
Sandaswami
M. Sri Khanta

Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia

[Introduction & Acknowledgements] [Part 1 of 3] [Part 2 of 3] [Part 3 of 3]

Part Two of Three ...

Don't mix with those who have no desire for spirituality.
Don't hesitate to speak out in public what is just and right.
Never act against your conscience out of fear of authority.
Knowledge gained from the company of great souls is superior to book-knowledge.
The ornaments of the soul are justice, integrity, courage, and truth.
Bad men obey out of fear. Good men obey out of love.
Justice is to give each man his proper share.
You cannot get rid of evil simply by exposing it.
If you try to be good, loving and honest, evil will disappear.
He who has no patience cannot be a man of justice.
Not all can understand that I am in all.
Instead of going on studying and studying, it is better not to forget what you have already studied.
Learning means removing the veil of ignorance.
Don't worry about posterity.
The aim of one who does good to others is to do good to himself.
The benefit of oneself is the basic aim.
You cannot improve others or the world. Improve yourself.
The only path I know is the path of virtue.
Everything is that, I can assure you. I assure you that is everything.
This is the easiest path for coming to knowledge of yourself.
There is no need to try to know God. It is enough if you see that your conduct is good.
He who has strength of mind will not be agitated. If you are agitated you cannot know the Truth.
You came into the world empty handed. And when the call comes, you must leave it empty handed.
If you want liberation in this birth make your mind a cremation-ground and burn all your desires to ashes.
All that has form must disappear. The mind is also with form, so that too must go.
Repeat the five letters before your past karmas come and overpower you.
God is not the cause of sin and virtue.
One word of Grace can make all past karma fly away.
Don't let your 'ego' spoil the intellect given you by God's Grace.
The whole is a picture.
Whether others treat you with kindness or with rudeness, don't be affected.
Your mother is divine and so is the dog.
Behave towards your mother in the way that befits your mother,
and towards the dog in the way that befits the dog.
And when you are sick, behave in the way that befits a sick man.
The whole world is a hermitage.
He is beautiful who, though crippled in body, is not crippled in knowledge.
To remain happy is liberation.
Do not associate with those who stir up trouble.
The knowledge of God cannot be contained within the limits of any book.
Bramacharya is not to err in thought, word or deed.
Waves rise in the ocean; so waves of thought arise in the mind.
Yoga is to control thoughts as they arise. Great ones say that Yoga means union.
If you want to take hold of something, all the fingers must join together;
similarly, in order to reach God, the mind must become one-pointed.
It is not a simple thing to control the mind.
It cannot be done in a day, or even in a year.
Through constant effort thoughts can be controlled a little.
In this way the uncontrollable mind can finally be brought under control.
This is the supreme victory.
Space is an ashram. It is best for one to live as nature prompts.
Be a student always. And that is a most difficult thing to be.
It does not matter what anybody says. It does not matter what the Sastrassay.
Consult your own experience and accept as true only that which conforms to it.
It is good to be a king and to do one's duty as one.
People may not question the wrongs done by a king. That belongs to God.
It is a great thing fora king to do his duty in a spirit of divine detachment.
It is not everybody who can do that.
God is with you all the time. There is no work to be done.
Move in conformity with changes within your environment.
Be steadfast in truth. Natural forces are countless.
Be you, your own self, while at the same time recognizing all these.
That is wisdom. We do not do anything.
Everything happens of its own accord.
Be content within your own measure.
If you over-reach yourself, you will have to suffer.
You can hear the voice of God in everything and everyone.
Wisdom as such is an illusion. To be ourselves is the best that we can do.
Really a man can do all that he wants to do.
He has merely to acquire the necessary ability.
A knowledge of other people and other affairs is again as illusion.
These must be given up.
The world is an ashram - a training ground for the achievement of freedom.
Each one does his part according to his own measure. There is nothing that is evil.
A jak fruit is large in size, but it hangs by a slender stalk. Its power to hang lies in the strength of the stalk.
In the same way, the whole worlddepends on an unknowable energy for all its activities.
It is all the same whether this is called God, or given any other name.
Let there be conflict. The cream arises in conflict.
What harm is there if this world is destroyed?
What good can there be, if it continues to exist?
There is nothing very seriously wrong with anything.
You will find the attributes of the Divine in man.
If you look a little more closely, you will find that man is himself the Divinity.
A duck falling into water will swim away. A chicken falling into watermay drown.
The individual's life and action should be determined by his own nature and ability.
Love of the guru is most praiseworthy. Some emulate the good they see in him and prosper.
Others, like a sieve, retain only what should be discarded. They end up in suffering and sorrow.
The whole universe is peaceful and silent. There is peace and silence in the midst of noise.
Renounce all else to know that the body and soul are different.
Do what is necessary for the body. Don't distress yourself trying to make choices.
Conduct yourself in accordance with what happens to you.
It is not seen by the eyes. It is not heard by the ears.
It is not sensed by the nose. It is not spoken by the mouth. It is not known by touch.
It remains Itself. Only It can know Itself. It is here, there, and everywhere.
It is the cause of all action.
Love and hate are two forces. They keep the world moving. They are bothfound in man.
Love what should be loved and hate what should be hated,
and conduct your life in close comradeship with those around you.
If you want to go upstairs, you must climb every step.
If you want to climb the tree, you must first climb up the trunk before you reach the branch at the top.
In the course of climbing you may displace some leaves and even some fruits.
If you go on reaching further even after arriving at the topmostbranch, your life will be in danger.
The wise will discard feelings of 'I' and 'mine'.
Their aim will be spiritual advancement. They will transcend birth and death.
They will live at the feet of the Lord in perpetual bliss.
Do not harbour harmful thoughts. Discard anger and jealousy.
Be modest, disciplined, and happy and you will reach the top.
Know thyself by thyself.
We are the servants of Lord Siva. Our love towards one another is puja.
All are engaged in Service. The sun and the moon do the work of the Lord.
We serve the Lord and so do our legs.
God speaks through flowers as well as through the tongues of men.
Honour and dishonour spring from the same service. We have renounced both.
Why should a farm hand concern himself with boundary disputes?
We grow like these plants - they grow when watered; they wither and die when there is no water.
Just as salt dissolves in water, this body dissolves in the end,
and the end may come after eighty years or a hundred years or a hundred and twenty years.
If you boil the solution later it will crystalize again.
If you go fault-finding you will lose all your friends. The picture maybe bad, but why spit on it?
There is nothing wanting in us. Our only defect is the want of the realization of this truth.
You must learn to be cool and calm. You must learn to be cool and calm in the midst of intense activity.
Never be in a hurry. We keep away from those in a hurry.
Detachment involves a great deal of effort. Detachment gives you strength.
Nothing is ever destroyed.
If you want to be free from suffering, you must pray to God.
It is only when you can take good care of precious things, that they come to you.
You must prepare the ground for them. That is the state of wealth.
At eye-level you may see high ground and low ground. Viewed from a great height the differences are levelled.
When you realize God, the omnipresent, there is no consciousness of souls. It is all God and nothing else.
The fingers of your hand may go through all kinds of actions, but the fingers remain unchanged even after these actions.
It is all like a film show. All things are immersed in God. This realization cannot be described.
Any attempt at description is a blemish and will only be a source of extraneousgrowth.
Holiness begins with the realization that you are the atma.
When you go to bed, keep your mind free from thoughts.
If thoughts arise, get up and think them out before you go to bed again.
When you go to sleep be free from thoughts by postponing everything to the next morning.
Stand erect on your self.
Gandhi, the Buddha, and the rest of them came and have gone back.
The world remains as it always was.
God can be discovered only by God.
You must address each one according to his state in life.
You can't speak to men in the same way as you speak to dogs.
Work for the sake of work. You cannot be without work.
Look at the sun. Who knows when it came into being? It has always been there.
Think of yourself as one who has always been there and do your work.
It is all a glorious game. People call it the dance of the Lord. Be detached in action.
Happiness and sorrow, honour and dishonour occur one after the other.
Don't lose heart when you discover this.
At the foot of the mountain you are aware of the high ground and the low ground.
When you reach the summit the whole thing is just one beautiful spectacle.
It is all one. Yet there are many names and shapes and appearances.
It is not a question of seeing God. How can a part see the whole?
Regard everything as a manifestation of God, and you will realize the truth.
The servants of the Lord regard every single thing as the Lord Himself,
and they grow in that conviction and realize the truth.
Live a disciplined life. Everything else will take care of itself.
Work for the good of the world. You may work or you may not. God takes care of everything.
God exists. The world is at peace. God is peace.
What happens on the surface is all a game. God is overwhelmingly present everywhere.
The present is the result of past action. Man is the architect of his future.
When you serve ghee, you don't give it for every handful of rice.
Neither do you go on drawing attention to ghee at every handful.
Don't set yourself up as a guru. Don't let others do obeisance to you as to a guru.
God is in everyone.
Think of the whole world as one. Let your thoughts embrace the whole.
Do not give up prayers or puja. But you must go further and further.
If you have set out for Colombo, you may enjoy whatever you see on the way,
but you should not stop on the way.
You and I are one. You do not believe this. I tell you, it is true.
Of what use is it to remain deep in meditation?
One must attain a state of permanent self-awareness at all times and in all places.
You must live with everybody, in the midst of everybody, but never forget your true self.
A small umbrella can hide the sun. Your loss is my loss and my loss is your loss.
Everything is interwoven. The world moves on as it should. There is nothing wrong here.
Knowing yourself is the one and only guru-puja. All other guru-pujas are mere herd enjoyment.
Have faith and confidence in yourself.
As food is necessary for life, so is prayer necessary for the realization of the Truth.
Prayer is an aid and not an end.
The world is by nature illusive. Yet God is incessantly and indefatigably at work all the time.
Everyone is chanting vedas. One chants the vedas of religion, another the vedas of acquisitiveness;
the third the vedas of egoism, and a forth the vedas of lust. Thus everybody chants the vedas !
God lives in the midst of fire. Does he prevent it from burning?
He lives in the midst of tigers; He lives in the midst of theives.
Does He ever get angry? You must live like that in the world.
If you realize this, you will let everything well alone.
Does God expect you to kill tigers? The law of life that governs the tiger is different from that which governs man.
Take good care of your body, if you want to attain divine wisdom. If you don't it will be very dificult indeed.
In all countries, the sun rises in the east. Don't take a cock-eyed view of things.
See with both your eyes. Then all things will appear equal.
Try cohabiting with God. All life on earth is the result of the cohabiting of the sun and the earth.
If an earthquake does you harm do you try to harm it in return?
We just keep quiet. Let everyone mind his own business.
Let the Greater Self guide you.
Go on learning. But the real man is beyond all learning.
You must all live like God, in unity and peace.
You must live in the world like the copra and the tamarind within their shells.
The flower has a stalk. There always has to be something that sustains you.
If everything were perfect, there would be no reason for this birth.
The moon makes no attempt to dispel the darkness that covers one portion of it;
it gives light to the earth and dispels darkness there.
It is good to be concerned with the welfare of other people.
Live in the world as though you belonged to the dead.
It is good to work for yourliving. Live unattached, and help those in need of help.
We are like the fisherman with his rod and line.
We may release the linea little when there is a bite, only to pull it all back at the proper time.
It is all now very clear that God exists, that He is everywhere, and so am I.
Yet this body has to remain within this hut.
You will know Him, if you keep quiet. All your suffering and your disease are for good.
You must sweat and fall ill. Don't try to fly because others do.
Work and be friendly. Observe and you will understand. Love is God. Truth is God.
You cannot see God with your eyes; you must experience God.
God is all things; God is everywhere.
Running water will run faster if you remove an obstruction here and there. You need not do much more.
The one who prays and the one to whom prayers are addressed are one and the same.
Books become necessary only when knowing yourself is not possible.
When the sky is overcast, the peacock struts, the nightingale sings, the cock crows, and the owl calls.
When the mind becomes pure, song arises spontaneously. Every action has a reaction.
What is done with the eye reacts in the eye and what is done with the leg reacts in the leg.
Stand upright. Be disciplined. Be friendly. You will lack nothing.
Live unperturbed in the conviction that all that you see with your eyes is transient.
There is in fact no change or alteration in existence.
Do not think of one as big and another as small.
Truth is not encompassed by books and learning.
You must know yourself by yourself.
There is nothing else to be known.
Where you are, there too am I.
All that exists is one. It assumes various forms.
Greet those who cometo see you.
Inquire after their health and well being, but remember - all are one.
Live unshaken in the realization that all that I see is myself.
Reason, discriminate and then stand firm.
The one life-giving sap appears as bark, branch, leaves, and flowers and makes up the tree.
There is nothing that need be rejected in the community.
Not one atom can move apart from Him. We do not know. Not all realize the Truth. Only some do.
It is all His work. It is everywhere. It supports the thief as well. There is nothing strange.
What is above is yourself and what is below also is yourself.
(Devotee: Why should a man work?)
That question should not arise. Can you ask why God exists? This is a similar question.
God is with us. There is no work to be done.
Yet, one must move in tune with the apparent changes in the world.
Be firm in the realization of the Truth.
We do nothing. Everything will go on by itself.
God speaks everywhere through everyone. The awakened ones are aware of this.
Live content within what has been measured out for you. If you strive for more you will suffer.
Everywhere, all the time, and in everyone you can hear the voice of God.
There is nothing called nature in existence. All is God. Who can nullify even a little heat?
The hand does its work, the leg its work. So everyone does his work -
the trees their work, the labourer his work, the teacher his work, the sage his work.
God is the great Maharaja, who sits witnessing all this.
There is nothing imperfect in the world. Witness everything as God does.
Karma is movement in the mind. When the mind remains motionless, there is no karma.
One Truth exists. One cannot claim to have seen It; nor can one assert that one has not seen It.
It is an open secret. Who can know the knower?
Sages have appeared from time to time, said one thing and another, and then disappeared.
It remains Itself, ever unknowable, ever new.
You look outwards. Many persons, many things impinge on you. Many ideas arise.
There is a force which is the basis of all these. You may twist your fingers in all directions.
There is one thing which does all the twisting and remains the sustaining force. There is nothing in the external world.
Choose any system of inquiry and It manages to become lost in the system.
There is happiness when we look inwards and unhappiness when we look outwards.
But the truth is present in the unhappiness as well as in the happiness.
The changing universe keeps on changing all the time.
That which causes the change and remains unchanged, that is the Truth.
Night follows day in unchanging regularity.
Can you restrain either the one or the other even for a short time?
That is the world. Move as the ants do, slowly, steadily, and in disciplined formation. That is the way to grow up.
You may have renounced everything and you may live in full realization as a Sannyasi.
But then, people will come to worship you. You will have to say something and then the trouble begins.
Cast aside mental creations and conflicts as a dog, emerging from the water, shakes it out of his coat, and be yourself alone.
Attracting people to yourself is another self-deluding activity.
Even Kadaiswami seems to have fallen for it. Chellappan was great; he never gave in to such delusions.
He merely muttered Who know, and 'It was all settled long ago,
and went about the outer courtyards of the Nallur Temple and sat in the dirt,
saying that all that dirt would frighten away the people who came to fall at his feet.
I don't think anyone ever got from him an answer to a question.
I merely stood and waited behind him for the occasional gem that fell out of all the mad talk.
Two European ladies came to me. They had been in India to see Mahatma Gandhi.
They wanted a message from me. I asked them what Gandhi had told them.
The Mahatma had said, One God, one world.
I told themI could not think of a better message.
Once you have realized the Truth you may give up work, if you want to.
But till you realize it you must continue to work. Sloth is the greatest danger.
There is no wisdom in work itself. Wisdom lies in your attitude to work.
No one can describe the Truth adequately. Even the great Sankara failed to do so.
It is. All activity and all sustenance is contained by It.
The wind keeps blowing; leaves move and then cease to move as though tired out.
Maya continues to be active. Truth, however, remains undiminished.
Don't become involved in anything. I can do anything. There is always a justification for it.
You must go on comtemplating your own self, while regarding others as you regard yourself.
You and I and Manikkavasakar and others are like waves that rise in the ocean.
Can they run away? Fish must live in the ocean in spite of the waves.
What a beautiful world! There is everything that everybody needs and each one takes according to his needs.
Even the drunkard is necessary.
To do the sort of thing he does in his drunkenness he must necessarily get drunk.
Is it an easy thing for anybody else to do that sort of thing?
Don't surrender your liberty, to anyone.
Don't you be deceived because one man says one thing and another says another thing.
It is wrong to kill a tiger in its forest. But you must kill it, if it enters the village.
Discriminate between the permanent and the perishable.
Make the discrimation certain and then do any work that you choose to do.
There is wisdom in everyone.
The Buddha has spoken words of great wisdom like other Great Ones.
But if you concern yourself with these, you will not realize Divine Grace.
Is there a consciousness greater than that of a Sivathondan? He is truly great.
Don't be overwhelmed by work. Shake it off as any animal shakes off a parasite.
The world appeared ugly to the Buddha and he renounced it.
He realized the Truth and then he loved the world and began doing good -
the work involved all the heavy responsiblity of the man with a family.
You must have desire and you must also have the ego, if you want to realize God.
How can you know God without this ego!
Continue to work. While you work you may do right and then you may do wrong.
You must however continue to work.
Good thoughts and bad thoughts are twins.
The heights of life are more difficult to climb than the Himalayas.
How numerous are the obstructions! Even towards the end the ego will raise its head...
Don't think of anything as unnecessary and don't think of anything as necessary either.
Continue to work in the firm conviction that 'We are.'
It is not proper to give up work. Krishna dispelled Arjuna's illusions.
Fight! The world is a battlefield. Accept anything that comes.
Do not give up out of fear or pity.
The Truth is one. The rest is illusion. States of realization are also an illusion.
Truth is betrayed by the first attempt at articulation. What else can one say.
One may discuss the rains and the harvest and so on...
You must realize It yourself. It is wrong even to put it that way.
How does one express something changeless and beyond the mind? The whole is the Truth.
There is order in the universe. The thief and the trouble-maker are part of this order.
God is with all of us. We are all God. Our normal life is a dream state.
You cannot put off meditation till all the noise ceases.
In meditationthe noise may be heard and yet not heard.
Some people go deep into meditationand are unable to come out of it.
This is a beautiful world. Everything is so ordered to suit the needs of the past and the future of everyone.
Here (at the Sivathondan Nilayam ) let there be no talk.
People merely read what is in books and enjoy themselves lecturing other people.
The others gain nothing by it. God is with each one of us.
Let each one obtain by himself what he needs.
I am Buddha and you are the Sangha. Buddha means the wise one.
The five senses are five brothers.
Today (a yajna day) is a day for exercise. I shall set fire to you and burn everyone of you!
Tell me who your friends are and I shall tell you who you are.
Only one free from desire has the right to grow a beard!
Don't do anything like that till you are free from desire.
I am a dog because I am grateful to the Creator.
Do not desire even the ecstasy of mukti. Besides, there is no ecstasy there!
You must live without being involved.
What is in my heart is the same as what is in yours. That is what iseverywhere.
The way to know It, is to think, think and think again until you think to a certainty.
Avoid saying Do this; and avoid saying Don't do this.
Who is inside? (asked Swami of a devotee in the Sivathondan Nilayam
-'I am the only one' answered the devotee.) That is the truth.
You are the only one in the universe!
Don't proclaim the truth, and don't lie.
All things are conscious and I am everywhere.
Ask all these who come here (i.e. to the Sivathondan center) to learn to remain in silence.
When you perform Yajna, should you not fast and meditate and make ceaseless effort throughout the day?
Good work. However it is not enough just to be harmless.
You must even be angry and assertive. Of what use is it, if other people merely call you a good man?
All are one. Only work is different. Don't ride rough-shod over anything.
There is always a reaction to every action. You must meet situations simply, as they arise.
This (Swami's illness) is a gift. Karma must be gone through. I have no connection whatever with this body.
This body brought with it the seeds of all else in life. Illness is part of it.
One need not inquire into the cause of this illness.
There is no action that can be claimed as ours.
All this was settled long, long ago.
Don't be frightened of anything.
People who understand the cause of this will merely note this as the end of all suffering and remain undisturbed.
The ignorant become restless and sad.
The Buddha says that all Karma must be gone through, but Christ says there is remission of sin.
Activity passes on. The body which came with it passes along with it. Of what concern is it to us?
God exists. He is everywhere. He is with me. And I have all I need to have, say the Great Ones.
I believe that and live by it. You do not need much learning.
It is enough if you can live in the light of this.
Oh the endless anxieties of endless births! When will these delusions end?
Keep on analysing yourself within. Work for the sake of work.
You need not worry about profit and loss. You should not even think evil of other people.
Don't give a chance for other people even to misunderstand you.
The religious life is one in which you live in peace and happiness with everybody.
Let us now just be. You must make all possible effort in religious practices.
(Wiping off some oil on his hands with some waste paper.)
Even this pieceof paper rejected as useless has now become useful.
Chastise with love.
Live in the world like the man who runs away from the rain for fear of being drenched.
Live without colliding. Shake off delusions and stand on your own Self.
There is nothing that is evil. Killing is one of the Five Activities.
I will not kill; neither will you kill. But evidently the world cannot go on without killing.
(Spoken while apparently asleep.)
There is a wick within us. You light it, if you want to.
This is what you must tell people who come seeking Truth.
Come, sit in peace. Think, and you will realize that God is with you.
You must think to realize. It will not come without thinking.
If you go on thinking about whatever you may want, you are bound to get it some day.
(A business man came in with some offering in his hand.)
Here he comes accompanied by his business!
Do not come in this manner. It is sin to give and sin to take.
Those who have risen will only receive from those fit to give.
Give only to those fit to receive.
The Sannyasi who receives from the unfit, harms himself and giver. You can worship, beg, and eat.
It is very wrong to assume Swamihood and to eat what is demanded for and offered to a Swami.
The Mad Ones, all of them lived by begging. They received no offerings.
Entire families of some people who associated with Swamis for material benefits, have disappeared.
You must be a servant of the Lord, within yourself. It does not matter what you appear to be outwardly.
Only think of those things that can be disclosed the moment you are asked to disclose them.
Let not your right hand know what your left hand does.
Do not sympathise with the undeserving. It can only harm you.
Your body is the soil. Cultivate it.
Don't become indebted to anybody.
Don't carry tales.
Who can live long enough to enjoy all the wealth he has accumulated?
It is sufficient to have just enough to live on.
The turtle lays a thousand eggs and remains silent.
The hen lays justone egg and cackles endlessly.
Be like the turtle. Don't behave like the hen.
To live as a house-holder with inward detachment is true dharma.
Many great servants of the Lord have done that.
Even those who have renounced the world must find something congenial to do.
Never spend more than your income. If you wish to live without worry, reduce your wants.
There is no special talent in anyone.
Neither is there any particular disability in anyone.
It is all the work of the Lord.
As long as the body made of five elements lasts, the nature of these elements will manifest.
There will be passion and jealousy and cruelty, etc.
The great ones control these with their wisdom.
To live and then to cast off this body according to one's own nature is best.
Bathe when you sweat, eat when you are hungry and sleep when you must.
Live like water on a lotus leaf.
Do what you consider right as your conscience directs you.
Do your duty as the sun and the moon do theirs.
All great ones have undergone suffering. None can escape what is ordained.
The way to avoid unhappiness is to control your mind,
to seek the friendship of the wise ones, and to live in the midst of devotees.
Nothing exists except the Lord. Everything is his action.
Place all your burden under His Feet and rest. Don't give room for sorrow or despair.
Don't have regrets that I did this or he did that. Be awake!
I do not know any Yoga; nor do I know any spiritual practices.
All that I know is virtue. Virtue will bestow everything.
You must understand that all these actions that arise from maya are a help to realize the Self.
By raising him up and bringing him down again and again, the Lord makes a man gain experience.
You must get rid of all illusion. All tests are for good.
Do not eat anything if you are not hungry, even if it is given by God Himself.
When the mind and the soul become one with God, it is samadhi.
Be calm. Even if God appears, offer Him a seat, and be calm.
Be patient till you realize the Truth and can enjoy it.
The usefulness of any action depends a great deal on the attitude of mind of the man who acts.
In you I see myself in another form.
If you plant brinjals you can pluck only brinjals.
If you sow goodness, you can reap goodness.
If you sow evil, you will reap evil.
Once you realize the Truth, you will not be aware of duality, like order and disorder, etc.
Christ and Buddha and Mohammed are all within you.
Even the touch of great souls will do one good.
Welcome those who seek your hospitality according to your means.
Everything that everybody needs has been sent in advance into the world before his arrival.
Do not see God in a particular place or particular way. God is in everything and beyond.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
That is the basis of all religions.
Man is beyond comprehension.
You are married to your body. Body is your wife.
I give you a suit. Body is the best suit.
One in many; many in one.
Do not be a lamb, and roam about from place to place. Sit down and meditate and roar like a lion.
I am telling this to myself about myself. I am not telling this to you and you are not hearing me.
I am you and you are I.
There is no sannyasi in the world. I am the only sannyasi.
You cannot see that which makes you see.
You are at the bottom of the hill. The man at the bottom and the man at the top are the same.
Be as a child.
Don't speak of me.
...I cannot be all in one place. So one takes a foot, one an eye, one a hand - and so on.
Be in your place. Work in your place.
You must work. Do some work. Don't idle.
(Pointing to himself) - Greatest activity! Do your dharma.
Work according to your capacity. Ten gallons - ten gallons capacity.
Dogmas, doctrines, and so on - don't bother with them.
Guard your tongue. Otherwise harm will come to you.
Keep quiet; but sometimes talk - talk freely.
Do not speak before you understand.
Just sit quietly. Swami will speak to you. All are Swami.
Be like a crane, which sits doing nothing;
but when it sees food, it is immediately alert and pounces at once.
Do some work. You don't work. It works. Much to be done.
I am the whole world.
I am in all. All forms are mine.
Don't read books - It is in you.
Don't run here and there.
You have work to do? Do that work.
In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God.
The word was Aum. Amen the same.
Don't be a pessimist; don't be an optimist. Middle path.
Don't talk lightly.
Give up this idea of realizing. There is nothing to realize.
You cannot realize. I cannot realize. There is no 'you,' no 'I.'
You cannot know the Truth. You must get rid of that idea. Truth is. All is Truth. Truth is 'I am.'
This idea of 'knowing' must be surrendered.
You must surrender everything. 'I', 'you', and 'he' must be surrendered. You must go beyond.
You are climbing Everest. You must struggle - struggle the whole way. All is play. God is play!
Time is short; the subject is vast
Only you can work. Only you can do it.
Play - just wander about here and there! The whole world is play.
Do your work. All work - trees work
(Devotee - But trees fulfill their functions, whereas man does not.)
All bear fruit- I give fruit, you give fruit. All work.
You are working now. Work is Svadharma - following your pattern.
I am the bringing forth. I am existence. I am dissolution.
All these are in Brahmam and Brahmam am I.
At the top there is nothing. So you have to come down a little. Then you can enjoy.
Don't eat too much. Eat little, read little, work little.
Belly should be half full - half food, half water - the other half empty.
Don't show what you read.
Find the Truth! Sit down till you find it!
You move up from truth to truth.
First hear; then inquire; then understand.
God is illusion - all is illusion.
No need to say anything. Just be! That is enough.
There is nothing. You are nothing. I am nothing. God is nothing.
Nothing changes, but there is change.
He who says he knows does not know. Nobody knows. Nobody has ever known.
Let your greater self direct you.
Take no authority! Let It speak. Speak out what is in your heart to others.
I don't know. Why do you want to know? Just be as you are.
The earth is my mother. The sun is my father. I am the son.
There is only one God, but He has three aspects, Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra -
creation, preservation, destruction. This is the whole world.
Take my message to the whole world - one God, one man, one caste!
There is nothing inside. God is nothing.
Don't believe anyone. People will talk, show 'siddhis' (supernatural powers). Don't believe. Stand on your own self.
Take the 'I' by the 'I'.
If you don't know, you are pure. Not knowing is purity. Then you are humble. If you know, you are not pure.
Aum is the eternal word that was in the beginning.
Act, but don't care for the fruits of action.
You are the only one in the world. Know that and be a man!
You are the whole world-every thing is in you.
Prayer is consciousness.
Nobody knows- I don't know. It is indescribable; it is inexpressible.
I speak nothing.
The mind must be absolutely still, like a lake with no ripples.
Christ was limited. I am also limited. If you speak, if you act, you are limited.
First obey; then command. Obey you own self.
You must not be bound by anybody or anything. You must be free.
The whole world will look after you. If I am angry, I am looking afteryou.
You are responsible for yourself. You must work for yourself.
Give to others-without attachment. Help others, but without attachment.
You don't want (i.e. need) to speak. Be 'mounam '. You don't want (i.e. need) to do anything. Simply be! Be it!
Don't take anything from others - food or drink, - unless you are hungry.
If you are hungry, you can eat stones!
If God comes and gives, don't take!
If you give to others, do so with attention.
If you can control the mind, you obtain certain powers. That is just tricks.
Very bad to use them. You can know what others are thinking. Very bad to use that.
Don't follow me; don't follow anyone. Follow yourself.
Very easy to humbug.
Until you understand, you must be very careful. You must watch every step.
Examine yourself everyday. That is the first step.
First step, second step, third step - and so on, till you come to the top.
When you understand, you can do what you like. Dance!
All is spirit - movement. All movement all change is spirit - movement.
Don't take anything from others. Stand on your own self. Don't dependon others.
Very easy to become a big swami. Then you are lost!
Limit yourself. Don't go beyond the limit.
(What do you mean by 'limit'?) Don't eat too much and so on.
The world is. The world is not.
You are alone - no friends, no foe.
All are struggling to the top like corks in a bucket of water.
Christ is deceiving you. Buddha is deceiving you. I am deceiving you. If you speak, you lie. It is inexpressible.
Think well before you resolve on action.
These are three constituents of action - production, destruction, and value.
Assess the quality and measure before you act.
If you want to know anything, just see people - they will tell you.
I see God everywhere. I worship everywhere. All are God. I can say that, because I don't know.
All is Brahman. That is bhakti !
You don't want power. Power will come of itself.
He who is in devoted pursuit of Truth, endures hunger, thirst, fatique, and the harm done by others.
Buddha had the desire to teach and so he came down and struggled and spoke
and then returned up and went beyond, having satisfied his desire.
Christ also came and had the idea of suffering. So he suffered and went on.
But people are just the same. No use preaching. Just be!
Be like the rhinoceros.
Why do you want to know? I don't know. I am the same as others.
They are all realized, but they don't know it. There is just that small difference.
See God everywhere. This is practice. First do it intellectually. Then you will know it.
All play. The world is a playground. All the world is a theatre.
Act in the moment. Commands come from moment to moment - go here! Go there!
Christ, Buddha came - then they left their bodies.
I and you must do the same. That is nothing. But you must give (the body) enough.
Middle path - Buddha taught that.
Don't eat too much, work too much, sleep too much!

[Introduction & Acknowledgements] [Part 1 of 3] [Part 2 of 3] [Part 3 of 3]

Yogaswami

Sri Lanka(1872 - 1964) The Words of the Master

Collected by His four disciples: Markandu Swami A. Chellathurai Sandaswami M. Sri Khanta

Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia

Part Two of Three ...

Yogaswami

Sri Lanka(1872 - 1964) The Words of the Master

Collected by His four disciples: Markandu Swami A. Chellathurai Sandaswami M. Sri Khanta

Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia

Sri Lanka
(1872 - 1964)
The Words of the Master

Collected by
His four disciples:
Markandu Swami
A. Chellathurai
Sandaswami
M. Sri Khanta

Sri Lanka
(1872 - 1964)
The Words of the Master

Collected by
His four disciples:
Markandu Swami
A. Chellathurai
Sandaswami
M. Sri Khanta