12 October 2005 Press Conference Highlights

Opening Remarks

Maharishi: ‘Jai Guru Dev. It is a great day of satisfaction—complete satisfaction—because I see the goal is visible. I am stepping onto the goal of world peace; we are about to step onto it. Even though it is a joy to speak about it, when we were speaking about it in the past, we had to show to the listeners, and they had to see at a distance. Some believed their vision, and some did not. [gap in broadcast] It is coming on. Now we can say it has almost come to the door. The achievement is quite at hand. All that was theoretical before is now taking a practical shape—that is all.

‘It is not that science is separate, and technology is separate, which means that the principles are separate and the practice is separate—no. They are not two things. Both the principles and the practice, science and technology, are the same thing. As it comes to be understood, it gets applied automatically. So as people are understanding more and more, the application of it is completely spontaneous.

‘Today, on Victory Day, when we reviewed how much has been achieved, we found that we are already at the door, we are at the door. It is great that on this Victory Day we can announce that the door we have been knocking on has opened. It is a matter of entry into it. It is an open door now. Enter who wants to enter. Simply enter who wants to enter.

‘Now I do not have to convince the people. What I am saying is from the level of fulfilment. Already, the nature of the world —“the nature” means influence of Natural Law—has started to be seen practically functioning on that level where the achievement is with the understanding. The application, the technology, is with the science. You know, and then it is done. Knowing is Being in this case. Knowing is Being, because it is Being which you know. So when knowing is Being, then Being and knowing are not two different things. It is not that you understand a thing, then you apply the thing, and then the application will bring you results—no. Knowing is Being—that is all. It is the same thing. It is very beautiful.

‘Today’s call is for everyone to enjoy, that is all. It is now a matter of something that is very common these days. What is common these days is [laughter] the press-button operation. You press the button, and the work is done. This is a scientific age in which you press the button [laughter].

‘Dr Hagelin, explain this particular characteristic of the scientific age to them. The scientific age is the age of the press-button operation. Now you can actualise by pressing the button, and what you actualise is your objective, your goal, your purpose. It is a very beautiful thing.

‘Tell them this is the characteristic of this scientific age. You press the button, and then you have achieved the goal. There is no time lapse between pressing the button and achieving the goal. Explain this to them. This is the only advantage of the scientific age and disadvantage of the non-scientific age. The “non-scientific age” means that you keep on rambling on something, and you do not know what you are doing and all that. You are hoping to do something. But in this scientific age, there is no rambling. You press the button, and you achieve anything.

‘It is very beautiful. All glory to Guru Dev, the tradition of Vedic Masters—the eternal tradition of Vedic Masters. The path shown by them is a pathless path, because the knower is the goal [laughter]. The knower is the goal.

‘The Constitution of the Universe is the administrator of the universe. The “Constitution of the Universe” means the knowledge of the laws of nature. Where is total Natural Law? It is evident in the operation of gravity. In our Yogic Flying, it is this gravity that is demonstrated. The gravity is commanded by the mind. Then the effect is instant—immediate. It is not that you know the thing today, and then you will achieve it tomorrow—no. It is instant; knowing is Being. Knowing is Being in this case, always.

‘It is a very beautiful thing. Today’s voice is the voice of the press-button operation. The voice is “Yogasthah Kuru Karmani”. “Yogasthah Kuru Karmani” means “being in the self-referral state, perform action”. Being in the self-referral state, you are already in the state of Being, and then perform action. Action performed on the level of Being is Being performing, and Being getting the result. The result is instant. That is what we say: the command over gravity is instant. Within just a few days or a few weeks of practicing, then it becomes completely automatic, press-button, and the result is there.

‘All the big, huge complications and suffering and difficulties and negativities and all these different enemies seem to be so difficult and impossible. For these one prepares big, giant counteracting military procedures—all those big, destructive values. All that is not necessary. The man of the scientific age is a capable man. It is not a man who was thrown out of balance due to either this or this or this or this—no. It is not due to the action process that the man of the scientific age can be thrown off. This is the advantage of this scientific age.

‘We are celebrating the Victory Day. That means that we are announcing our wakefulness regarding the principle that instantly, the action gets results—instant, not a long time, and certainly not adverse. It is not that you [laughter] do an action thinking that you are achieving it, and then you lose this, lose that. It is not random action, but specific. You cannot do wrong. That is why there is Victory Day. Now you will realize that you are a citizen of the scientific age, and you do not have to ramble on in suffering, weaknesses, troubles, doubts, and all this negativity. There is all positivity in the Age of Enlightenment.

‘It is a beautiful vision today. Dr Hagelin, tell them that the very special feature of the scientific age is that the goal is no more to be sought. The Unified Field, which was to be sought before, is found to be omnipresent, omniscient, everywhere, all over, inside, outside, here, there, everywhere. And then it is found to be the Self of everyone. So what is there to seek? It is a matter of using it. That is why we say, “By knowing it, you be it. By being it, you are a lively field of all possibilities—Being, omnipresent, omniscient.”

‘This has placed human awareness, or human life, on a plateau with no more to ascend and no chance of slipping down to descend, because you are on the plateau. The chances of slipping down are over; you are on the plateau. This is the gift of the Day of Victory—Victory. When we were wanting invincibility, then the Day of Victory brings it from the Vedic calendar. A day comes to rejoice in that which had become, so to say, obscured to vision. This is the scientific age. Anything that was obscure is clear, near at hand.

‘It is beautiful; it is a joy. We always say, “Glory to Guru Dev, all glory to Guru Dev, who gave us a clear vision of reality, who opened the door for us and pushed us to enter into it [laughter]. It is very good, very beautiful. It is a very beautiful day today—especially beautiful—because we feel so relaxed after this Victory Day. Victory is victory—that is all. We say, “Victory before war”. We did not have to go to war in order to be victorious. We do not have to wage a war to be victorious. We are victorious because there exists no enemy for us, either front, back, or sides. Enemies are not there.

‘It is a beautiful vision of ours, and we enjoy it—Victory—Victory Day.’

Question: The Significance of the Flag-Raising Ceremony

Dr Hagelin: ‘Jai Guru Dev, Maharishi. Thank you very much for this beautiful introduction. Maharishi, the first question is on the raising of the flags all over the world. The reporter says, “I read that thousands of flags of world peace are being raised today all over the world in regions where indigenous languages are spoken, at sites where Peace Palaces and peace colonies will be built, and on an island in the Far East, in Hawaii in the west, on mountaintops, and near waterfalls. Maharishi, what is the significance of so many flag-raising ceremonies in so many diverse locations throughout the world?” ’ 

Maharishi: ‘It indicates that that which is achieved on the ground is real and can even be seen flying in the sky. It establishes its reality. It is a symbol of the reality which is on the ground and also in the air, in the sky. So it takes away the difference between, or the distance between, the ground and the sky. That means that which was far away before, now has come to be grounded.

‘A flag is a very beautiful symbol of achievement and the universality of the principles that are on the ground. That is why every government has a flag. Government governs from the ground, but the governing process is not only limited to the ground; it is also seen in the air, in the sky, in the empty space.

‘A flag is a good symbol that connects the concrete with the abstract. Raising the flag means putting together the concrete and the abstract. That means that it is the ultimate achievement of Unity—unmanifest and manifest values.

‘We can [laughter] keep on stretching the meaningfulness of the flag and flying the flag for all achievements. In the end, it will come to the same thing: that which is grounded is also flying in the sky—both things, no difference. The joy of the ground has ascended up in the heavens. That is what this will mean.

‘The flag ceremony goes with the Vijaya Dashami Day—the joy of the Victory Day. It symbolizes victory on the ground as much as victory in the air. It is very good—unmanifest victorious and manifest victorious. It, philosophically, takes the cause and effect to be one together—cause and effect. The cause is that which causes the ground to be in the sky also [laughter].

‘A beautiful meaning can be added to it. We can keep on imagining all kinds of things. That is why it has been quite an ancient, quite an old habit. You raise the flag when you raise your achievements—victory. That is very good. Victory Day goes with this flag-hoisting ceremony.’

Question: The Victor on Victory Day

Dr Hagelin: ‘Thank you very much, Maharishi. The name “Victory Day” implies victory over someone or something—winner and loser. My question for Maharishi is: Who or what wins, and who or what loses on Victory Day? Who is the victor, and who is the vanquished?’

Maharishi: ‘Both sides come on the victory side. And when both come on the victory side, both can be seen on the losing side also. When they come both on the victory side, then the sky and the earth are one, and obviously, they are two.

‘On Victory Day, who loses what? Diversity loses unity, and the other way, unity loses diversity. Two things are there: unity is there, diversity is there. When unity is prominent, diversity is secondary. When one is prominent, then the other is secondary. So one loses and one gains. The same thing at one time loses; the same thing at one time gains.

‘This is the relationship between creation and its basis. The basis of creation is the unmanifest—unmanifest emptiness—unity, unmanifest unity. And the other way, diversity is the basis of unity. In another way, unity is the basis of diversity. So one is the basis, one becomes subordinate, and one becomes main. The other way, the other becomes subordinate, and the other becomes main. This is what makes the uni-verse—unified versification. That which is versified is actually unified; that which is unified is actually versified.

‘So what comes in the end? A viewpoint. Viewpoint becomes main in this consideration of who is first and who is second. In Sanskrit, the expression is “Yatha Drishtih Tatha Srishtih”— as is your vision, so is your creation. You can extend it to mean that your world is as you are. If you are unified, your world is “uni”. If you are diversified, your world is diverse. It is a viewpoint.

‘Now a viewpoint is like when we say, “A mango tree has lots of branches and lots of flowers and lots of fruits.” And someone says, “All this is nothing other than the sap.” Both are right. Both are right in their own right. One says, “There are so many leaves and all that.” He is completely right and he sees what it is. The other says, “No, these are all too superficial expressions, superficial impositions on the reality of the sap.” He is also right—he also.

‘So for someone, there is the big diverse value of a mango tree and all that. For the other, the mango tree is just nothing; it is just the sap. And what is the sap? The sap is the expression of the hollowness of the seed. So it is just emptiness. One can laugh at the whole existence of variety and establish unity, and the other could laugh at unity and establish variety. So the world is as one is. The world is a viewpoint [laughter]. It is interesting.

‘Today is the Day of Victory; then victory belongs to everything [laughter]. Victory can belong to any viewpoint [laughter]. Victory can belong to the ignorance, and that will be the Age of Ignorance. Victory can belong to enlightenment, that will be the Age of Enlightenment. The world is as one is: fullness or emptiness—that is all.

‘The field of knowledge has to be discovered from two diametrically opposed viewpoints. You have to know the tree as many things, and you have to know the sap as being the cause of all these different things. So the path of investigation—the path of knowledge—is through analysis and synthesis. These are the two paths to gain complete knowledge. You synthesize a thing, and then you analyse the synthesized thing—both ways. Then you get real Total Knowledge.

‘You must have both ways. The boy has to go from home to school, and then he has to return back from school to home in order to claim knowledge of the path. The same path has to be traversed twice, in two opposite directions. This is the way to gain knowledge.

‘In this Vedic theme of gaining knowledge, you take the knowledge in its completeness, the most concentrated value of knowledge, and then analyse it, analyse it, analyse it—infinite pieces of points of knowledge. Then put all those infinite pieces of different knowledge like that, like that, like that, and then come to a point, the Unified Field of knowledge. “Anvaya Vyatirekabhyam Nishprapancham Prapanchate” is the formula of unfolding the ultimate reality. “Anvaya Vyatirekabhyam”, analysis and synthesis, are the two tools to really have the proper shape of knowledge.

“Anvaya Vyatirekabhyam”—in this case, the Veda says, “What is Total Knowledge?” The world is a collapse of infinity onto its own point. So there are three things: infinity, the process of collapsing infinity, and then the state of coming to a point. These three things are Total Knowledge. Infinity, oneness, collapses to its point. That infinity is not stationary. It is exposed to dynamism. It is exposed to dynamism, and the dynamism puts it down to a point. And conversely, the point rises to dynamism and becomes infinity.

‘Between “A” and “K”, this is how we have the Constitution of the Universe in the Vedic structure. The Constitution of the Universe is available to us in one syllable “A”, and in two sounds “Ak”, and in the four sounds “Aknim”, and in the eight syllables “Aknimile Purohitam”. Like this, keep on expanding, expanding. At every stage, the wholeness is there, the wholeness is there, the wholeness is there. This is how it is very simple to have Total Knowledge.

‘It is very simple to have the units of Total Knowledge. These 7000 flags have gone up in the world today. If there are not 7000, we are aiming at that—conceptually 7000. They are the units of the total administrative power of the universe. The Constitution of the Universe has all the laws of nature. And all the laws of nature find their individual value like that—7000 or there could be millions of them. All these are the units of the total Natural Law that governs the universe, because the uni-verse is unified and versified. So the unified-versified Itself or Himself or, if you want to say, Herself—whatever you choose to use—is the administrator of its own value. Spontaneously, it administers itself.

‘This is just the jugglery of words. One could express a logical derivation this way and that way. But the reality is so simple. In any way, it is completely expressed.

‘That is why we give even the younger classes, these youngsters in the student age, that total habit of acting according to Natural Law. Practice the Transcendental Meditation Technique in the schools, and then practice Yogic Flying. Have command over the force of gravity. It is the force of gravity which is the force of attraction and repulsion. This is the value that governs the well-being and progress of everything in the world—total Natural Law, the Unified Field, the unifying value.

‘The value that unifies has the authority to diversify. Diversification and unification are two—both the things together. That is why the unmanifest and the manifest, both, are present everywhere. Transcendental Consciousness, the Self, is everywhere, and the relative things—all the senses and behaviour and the relative activity—are all there.

‘Life is everything. That is why the word “enlightenment” means that there is light about everything. Total Knowledge is there. There is no conjecturing about reality, as far as life is concerned. Life is life. Everywhere you look, whether you see life divided into units or the units unified in one wholeness, whatever, it is the same thing.

‘What is very necessary is that the world is going to be a better world. The best quality of world that can be ever conceived is going to be created with all our schools and colleges everywhere and with our awareness of the Constitution of the Universe and with our desire to have the future of every nation in this generation and all future generations on the top of the world. All will be in the light of the grace of God. All will be blessed by all good. That is our gift for them. We will establish these groups of collective Yogic Flyers, and then we will have created a better world in every way, a better world. Very good.’