ONE The First Step
The more wealth I created, the stronger this urge got, for I couldn’t understand what the fuss about money was. I’d tasted money, attention, fame and relationships, and become clear about the fact that none of these things could fill the void within. (Location 1541)
There is a fine line between sticking to your principles and losing your balance; (Location 2316)
They were not tears of pain, they were not tears of joy either; they were tears of love and surrender. (Location 2341)
An insight began to emerge on the horizon of my mind: beauty does not lie in the eyes of the beholder but in the mind of the perceiver. The cleaner the mind, the greater the beauty; the quieter the mind, the more enduring the experience. An empty mind is not a devil’s workshop; on the contrary, a passionate mind is, because a mind full of passions is often restless. An empty mind is but a divine blessing, for it is free of thoughts—a rare but coveted state for any yogi. If the mind was an ocean, a passionate mind would be tidal while an empty mind would be a calm, still ocean. (Location 2496)
Meditation is predominantly of two types: concentrative and contemplative. In the first kind, you build your concentration. In the second, you use it to reflect on the nature of reality and your own existence. Contemplative meditation gives birth to insight, and it is this insight that changes how you see and interpret the world around you. Deep concentration leads to samadhi, and deep contemplation allows you to maintain that state while dealing with the challenges of the world. (Location 2625)
The right preparation is the key to the greatest attainments, the antidote to all fear, the seed of competence and confidence, I concluded. (Location 2722)
Extraordinary bliss with an anger-free mind is an epiphenomenon, one of the by-products of intense meditation. (Location 2789)
To reach the transcendental state, to go beyond the physical body, you have to reach a place where you can completely forget about your body. Bodily movements are highly detrimental to good meditation because they make you aware of your body. Therefore, it’s absolutely essential to sit still in meditation because a still mind lives in a still body and a still body helps in stilling the mind; they complement each other. Just like you don’t need the raft once you cross the river, these conditions no longer apply once an adept has mastered the art of staying in samadhi. (Location 2796)
When you first start meditating, it is an act of the conscious mind and you have to make an effort to meditate. Once you start to master it, however, it takes on a new form. From an act, it becomes a state—a state of the subconscious mind. And, when you persist, it changes once again. No longer an act or a state, meditation becomes a phenomenon: it happens to you. (Location 2815)
I opened my notepad and scribbled in it: ‘Self-realization is not an instantaneous act. We may have an aha moment but it is mindfulness that allows us to navigate the world with the utmost awareness of our verbal, mental and physical actions. It is one thing to grasp that we are not just the body, but it is another thing altogether not to react when someone hurts us. We may recognize that anger destroys our peace of mind, but to remain calm, no matter how strong the provocation—that is real realization. (Location 2959)
Enlightenment teaches us how to live in the world with grace, independence and joy.’ (Location 2970)
It is wrongly assumed that tantra is about tantric sex, tantric massage, tantric yoga and so on. This is not where tantra starts or ends. Tantra is an inner journey the practitioner undertakes to break the conditioning of the mind and move beyond the conditioned and egoistic self, so that he may see himself as he truly is. (Location 3089)
The whole world was my family but I had no home. I belonged to everyone now but no one was my own. I loved everyone unconditionally, cared about people and felt their pain equally. I was not the doer now but a silent observer. I felt like the quiet mountains—giant and still, and the vast sky— clear and endless. (Location 3158)
When I spoke to my father a little later, his first question was: ‘What message do you have for us?’ ‘The universe is trillions of years old, our galaxy and planet are billions of years old. The human race is a few million years old, while the average human life is seventy years. It’s a very short life. It must be celebrated, it must be lived. Life is not a challenge that needs to be faced. Nor is it an enemy that needs to be fought. For that matter, it’s not a problem that needs solving either. It’s a flowing river, and all we need to do is to flow with it,’ I said. ‘Live. Love. Laugh. Give.’ (Location 3160)
Enlightenment does not mean you have to live like a pauper. It does not mean you have to subject yourself to a life of hardship and abstinence. On the contrary, to be enlightened means to live in the light of love, compassion and truthfulness. It means learning to live without reservations and inhibitions. (Location 3175)