Sachidananda Yogeeswara of Cuddappah

(from "Reminiscences of Kunju Swami"):


Kunju Swami: Sachidananda Yogeeswara of Cuddappah was a renowned hatha yogi. He once set out on a tour of the nation, delivering three-day discourses at all the important cities and towns of India. When he visited Tiruvannamalai as a part of this tour he came for darsan of Bhagavan and returned to his lodgings. Members of his retinue invited us to attend his discourse there. 


Palani Swami, who was a knowledgeable person, and I responded to this invitation and proceeded there. Yogeeswara was then in yoga samadhi. His people welcomed us and said, “Swami is presently in abidance in samadhi. He will rise out of it at a certain hour, and then deliver his discourse.” They, in turn, asked,“What are the timings of your Bhagavan’s samadhi schedule?” Their query provoked amused laughter from Palani Swami. They wanted to know why he was laughing and I explained, “It’s like this. Jnanis do not have definite time to go into or come out of samadhi.” In fact, a jnani is always in a samadhi. Many scriptural texts confirm this. Yoga Vasishtam says, “Whether idle or ceaselessly engaged in work and action, is the atma jnani ever out of the samadhi state? Even while he is performing worldly activities, the one who has attained complete jnana ever exists in a true, undifferentiated abidance in jnana, never letting go of that state. You see, our Bhagavan is permanently established in sahaja samadhi,” I pointed out. 


We returned to the ashram after listening to the discourse and Bhagavan as usual asked, “What news from there?” I reported what had taken place and, with a smile, Bhagavan observed, “What to do? People think that the samadhi state is confined to time and space. They believe that sitting motionless in one spot for several hours with the eyes closed is alone samadhi.” Another verse from Yoga Vasishtam says, “Those without equanimity may sit in Padmasana and meditate upon Brahman, but they cannot be said to be in samadhi. True samadhi is consigning one’s desires like straw into the fire of atma jnana. Mere motionlessness without equanimity is no samadhi.” Bhagavan too has said, in verse 31 of Reality in Forty Verses – Supplement: “To a traveller asleep in a cart its motion, standing still, or its draft bulls being unyoked make no difference. Likewise to the true jnani, who is asleep all the time in this loathsome body, its activities, samadhi, and deep sleep are all the same.”

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