After Kardama left, Kapila stayed on at home to benefit his mother Devahuti. One day Devahuti remembered the words of Brahma and she said to Kapila, I am disgusted with the agitation produced by my senses because it has caused me to become overcome by the darkness of ignorance. Because of this ignorance I have suffered the illusion of attachment to my body and things identified as I and mine. Would you please enlighten me and explain the relationship between spirit and matter.
Kapila was pleased to hear Devahuti’s questions and he smiled and said, The path of yoga which causes detachment from both happiness and sadness is the most beneficial to people. I will explain this path to you. The mind is the cause of both bondage and liberation for the soul.
When someone is attached to the sensual pleasure the mind will cause bondage. When someone is attached to the supreme person it leads to liberation. When the mind is free from impurities like lust and greed, which are born of attachment to conceptions of me and mine, it is peaceful and sees happiness and sadness equally.
Those with a purified mind can understand that although it is infinitesimal in size, the soul is self-luminous, eternal, indivisible and untouched by matter. This understanding produces detachment and the material existence loses its influence. There is no other path as favourable for spiritual knowledge than devotion to the Supreme Lord. The wise know that attachment for worldly objects will bind the soul to material existence. But attachment to the enlightened sages opens the gate to the soul’s liberation.
The sage is peaceful, tolerant, compassionate and friendly toward everyone. The sage is fixed in devotion to the Supreme Lord. They are always hearing and singing about my qualities and activities and so they are free of suffering. You should seek out the association of such people, because by their influence you will become indifferent to sensual enjoyment. This is the easiest process to control the mind.
Devahuti said, What is the correct conception of devotion which can help me easily and quickly achieve liberation? The yoga system is meant for liberation from material suffering. Can you please describe that yoga system?
Kapila said, Devotion to the Supreme Lord dissolves the subtle body just as the fire of digestion dissolves food. Those who are devoted to me always glorify my qualities and activities. They achieve liberation without any separate effort. One cannot be free from fear of death without taking shelter of me, for I am the controller of everything and the soul of all beings.
Kapila said, Now I will explain the characteristics of the truth and by knowing this you can be freed from the bondage to material nature. Spiritual knowledge cuts the bonds of attachment to the material world and leads to realisation of the self.
The Supreme Lord is the beginningless and eternal supreme soul. He is superior to matter, self-luminous and maintains the entire creation. Of his own free will and as his sport, he accepts the material energy which is constituted of three modes of nature. By means of these modes of nature, the various forms of the living beings are created. The modes shroud the knowledge of the soul’s identity and cause the living being to suffer the illusion they are material beings.
The living beings are spiritual and therefore distinct from material activities, but due to illusion they think they are the doer, although really it is the modes of nature that are the cause. The modes of nature are the cause of the body and the senses, but the perceptions of pleasure and pain are caused by the soul.
The material energy consists of five physical elements, namely earth, water, fire, air and space. There are also five subtle elements – smell, taste, colour, touch and sound. There are five senses for gaining knowledge – the senses of hearing, taste, touch, sight and smell. There are five organs for action – the mouth, hands, legs, genitals and anus. The internal subtle sense has four aspects – mind, intelligence, ego and conditioned consciousness.
Time is the combining element and the power of the Supreme Lord that causes the illusioned soul to fear death. The creation begins when the power of time stimulates the equilibrium of the unmanifested material nature. The Supreme Lord is within the creation as the supreme soul and externally as the form of time.
The Supreme Lord deposits his seed into nature and stimulates the destinies of the souls who are bound by the material nature. The quality of goodness is pure and tranquil. Just as water in its natural state is clear, so too the natural state of consciousness has the qualities of serenity and clarity.
Then the material ego arises and displays three types of potential for the performance of actions – goodness, passion and ignorance. The mind emerges from the modifications of the material ego in the mode of goodness. The mind has the characteristics of thought and deliberation and it is these that generate desire. When the material ego is modified by the mode of passion, it produces the intelligence. The function of the intelligence is to help in understanding reality and to facilitate the senses. Intelligence is characterised by doubt, misconception, right conception, memory and sleep.
The senses for acquiring knowledge and the senses of action are produced by the material ego in the mode of passion. The senses of action depend on the breath of life, and intelligence gives power to the senses for acquiring knowledge.
Impelled by the energy of the Supreme Lord the material ego in ignorance gives birth to the subtle element sound. From sound the element of space emerges followed by the sense of hearing. The wise define sound as that which conveys meaning and reveals the speaker. Sound is the subtle form of space. The characteristic of the space element is the expanse for living beings and it pervades them inside and out and supports the life air. When space is stimulated by the time element, the subtle element of touch arises and then the air, followed by the skin. Touch is the subtle form of air and its characteristics are heat, cold, softness and hardness.
When air and the sense of touch are impelled by destiny, different forms evolve and from the modifications of these forms, fire arises. From fire, the subtle element colour and the eye evolve. The qualities of fire are light and the capacity to destroy cold, cook, evaporate and produce hunger and thirst.
From the modifications of fire and vision, the subtle element taste is produced. From taste, water evolves and then the tongue which perceives taste. The varieties of taste are sweet, bitter, astringent, pungent, sour and salty. The qualities of water are moistening, coagulating, sustaining life, softening and removing heat.
When water along with taste was impelled by destiny, the subtle element of smell evolves. Then the earth and the nose become apparent. The earth is the place of sustenance for all the elements. Because the cause also exists in the effect, the characteristics of the former elements are perceived in the latter elements. Thus, the characteristics of all the elements exist within the earth.
Although the soul resides in a material body, it is beyond the modes of nature. The soul is changeless and not the doer. Although within a material body, the soul remains separate from the modes, just as the sun remains separate from its reflection on water.
When the soul is attached to the modes of nature and under the illusion of ego, he thinks he is the doer. Because of faulty actions and association with material nature the soul must helplessly accept the path of repeated birth and death and reincarnate into different species of life.
Although the soul does not exist in the material form, his material existence continues just as one experiences miseries in a dream. Therefore, the mind should be controlled by engaging in devotion with detachment.
One should practice non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy and non-possessiveness. One should hear and chant about me and thus elevate their consciousness. One should be impartial toward all living beings, treat no-one with hatred, practice celibacy and offer their actions to the Supreme Lord.
One should be content with whatever they can easily acquire and not eat more than they need to sustain the body. One should prefer to live in a secluded place and be serene, compassionate, friendly to all and aim to realise the self. One should understand the difference between spirit and matter and realise they are different from the body and so not become attached to possessions relating to the body.
Devahuti said, Can the soul ever be separated from matter since they depend on each other? If the soul is inactive, how can they ever find freedom as long as the ropes of material nature bind them? Even if one avoids the fear of material bondage by theoretical knowledge and inquiry into essential questions, the bondage may still return because its cause, the modes of nature, are not destroyed.
Kapila said, One can gain freedom from bondage by being detached from the rewards of their actions and with a pure mind hear about my activities and be devoted to me. The illusory power of the material nature has covered the knowledge of the living being. By understanding the mistake of material desires and renouncing such desires, the living being becomes independent.
When you are dreaming there are many unpleasant and troublesome things that are presented to you. But the same things don’t confuse you when you are awake. The material nature never causes harm to those who have realised the truth and knows the self. Their mind is always focused on the Supreme Lord and their knowledge of the self removes all doubts. The wise reach the ultimate goal and having reached that spiritual abode the devoted soul never reverts to material existence.
Kapila said, Now I will describe the yoga system, which when practised it purifies the mind and then the soul calmly and joyfully adopts the path of virtue. You should perform your duty according to your ability and avoid duties meant for others. You should be content with what is achieved by destiny and perform activities that lead to liberation. You should eat moderately and stay in a peaceful and secluded location.
You should be truthful and non-violent. You should not steal and be satisfied with having only as much as needed to maintain yourself. You should practice celibacy, austerity and cleanliness. You should study the Vedic scriptures and worship the Supreme Lord. You should achieve steadiness by practising yoga postures, controlling the breath and the senses. By these processes, or any other legitimate method, you should control the mind and fix yourself in thought of the Supreme Lord.
Devahuti said, You have described the characteristics of the material nature and also the spiritual nature. Would you now please explain the path of devotion. Could you also please describe the various types of births in this world because this will help me gain detachment from worldly activities. Please also explain the nature of time. O Lord, like the sun you can dispel the darkness of material life. Due to a lack of spiritual knowledge, people are deluded and without your shelter. They are weary because they are bound by their actions.
Kapila said, There are many paths of devotion that different people perform according to their individual nature. Devotion performed by a person who intends violence, who is disrespectful, angry or jealous, is devotion in the mode of ignorance. If someone desires fame and wealth and worships me publicly, or they consider their interests to be separate from mine, then their devotion is in the mode of passion.
Devotion in the mode of goodness is worship of the Supreme Lord which is performed with the motivation of freeing oneself from karma. A person whose mind is naturally attracted to hearing about the Supreme Lord just as the Ganges naturally flows towards the sea, displays pure devotion. This type of devotion is spontaneous and has no ulterior motive. By achieving pure devotion, you can defeat the influence of the three modes of material nature and attain the spiritual nature.
You should perform the duties prescribed by the scriptures without any motive. Avoiding causing harm to any living beings, you should perform daily devotional activities: offer prayers to me, look upon my image, worship and bow down to me. You should see me in all living beings and live with detachment. You should offer respect to the sages, show compassion to the afflicted and friendship toward your equals.
You should listen to philosophical teachings and chant my name. You should be honest and sincere in all one’s dealing with others and associate with virtuous people. By these practices you will purify your consciousness and become naturally attracted to hearing about me. Anyone who is constantly engaged in such devoted service can perceive the Supreme Lord’s presence everywhere.
I am present in the heart of all living beings as the supreme soul. If anyone neglects me and worships only images, their devotion is artificial. Those who offer respect to me but are hostile to other living beings will never achieve serenity. Anyone who is ignorant of my presence in everyone’s heart will never please me, even if they worship my image with all the correct rituals.
I cause a great fear of death in whoever discriminates between themselves and other living beings. You should try to satisfy me by viewing all living beings as equal and being friendly towards all of them. I do not know anyone who is superior to those who constantly offer everything to me. They understand that I am present in all beings and offer respects to them. Those who follow this path of pure devotion to me can achieve my supreme abode.
Time is the feature of the Supreme Lord that causes the various transformations in the appearance of things. Time causes fear among the living beings. It is due to fear of time that the wind blows, the sun shines, the rains come and the trees and plants bear fruit and flowers in their own season.
The universe expands under the control of the Supreme Lord as the power of time. Time does not begin and it does not end and time is death and causes the end. People do not know the great power of time even though they are controlled by it just as a mass of clouds is carried by the wind. In the pursuit of happiness one works hard for material things, and time destroys it all and the materialist weeps. Due to ignorance, the materialist forgets that the body is temporary and thus all things in relation to that body are also temporary.
In whatever species they are born, the living being finds pleasure in it and is never disgusted with it. Even in hell they are never inclined to give up their body. Due to their strong attachment for their body, wife, home, children, wealth and friends they think of themselves as happy but their body burns in anxiety and they perform impious actions to maintain their existence. They are seduced by the duties of family life which cause all kinds of suffering. They are acting only to avoid suffering yet they consider the absence of suffering to be happiness.
O mother, I have now described the path by which one can come to understand the relationship between matter and spirit. Both devoted service and philosophical study have the same goal – to reach the Supreme Lord. Just as an object is perceived differently by the different senses, the Supreme Lord is perceived differently according to the different paths described by the scriptures.
By performing sacrifice; giving charitable gifts; performing austerity; studying the Vedas; controlling the mind and senses; engaging in one’s occupational duties; practising yoga; engaging in devoted service and understanding the method of self-realisation and practising detachment, one can realise the Supreme Lord. I have now explained the process of devotion as well as time. These instructions are not meant for those who are envious, greedy, proud or hypocritical.
The story of Kapila and his mother Devahuti is the purest of narrations. Anyone who hears this will become devoted to the Supreme Lord and attain his abode.
