The Importance of Santmat

Santmat: An Introduction

Santmat, the Way of Sages, is also referred to as the path of saints, the teachings of saints, and as the conviction of saints and sages. It is neither a new religion nor a new sect of an existing religion. Santmat is not a new philosophical conviction, or even a new interpretation of a religious tradition. Santmat was not founded by any particular sage or saint, although it respects all equally. Further, Santmat represents the eternal and eternal wisdom and method and is in accordance with the ancient Vedas.

Santmat is a pure spiritual tradition. The teachings of Santmat integrate devotion of God with inner subtle knowledge and yoga disciplines. It has been spoken about by many of the saints.

Sant Tulsidas Ji sings in praise of Santmat:

I don’t mean any preference here as I praise Santmat as it is spoken about in the Vedas and the Puranas.

Sant Tulsi Sahab of Hatharas states:

I don’t know any other saint, guru or path. Only the path of saints I consider gratifying.

He further says:

Santmat is the quintessence. The rest is the net of illusion (maya).

Maharishi Mehi Paramhans Ji Maharaj praises the path of the saints:

Without the teachings of saints there is no liberation. I ask that you listen to this carefully. If you desire ultimate freedom then become the children of saints. By this is meant that freedom and liberation can only be attained by one who follows the path of saints with great devotion.

People who are ignorant of the knowledge of saints say that the teachings of saints are contrary to the Vedas. Also, those who are not fully conversant with the mystical teachings of the Vedas say the Vedas are devoid of the teachings of saints. However, Santmat refutes these erroneous claims, which are simply rooted in ignorance, and then brings understanding and harmony to these two incorrect perspectives. Santmat proclaims that the teachings of saints and the essential knowledge expounded by the Vedas are identical. As well, the sages and great saints of ancient times taught the same message about the Divine as the saints of today. These teachings of the saints are the same as the knowledge found in the Vedas. The present need is to examine these statements closely and to experience the Truth within.

As Kabir Sahab says:

The only people who find this [wisdom or Truth] are those who delve deep into the waters [of knowledge]. Those who are afraid of drowning in the water [of knowledge] only sit by its banks [and simply talk about the waters of knowledge].

If one studies deeply the words of the rishis (the Seers of the Vedas) and sages, then one will recognize the supreme harmony and corresponding agreement in the ideas.

Sant Dadu says:

Those who have reached the supreme destiny [understanding of Truth] all speak a single language. The wise are of one thought and they all belong to one caste [one mind set]

The Importance of Santmat

People everywhere in the world desire happiness, and none want suffering or pain. Of all living beings, human life is the most advanced. Humans not only desire happiness, they also make many kinds of efforts to achieve peace and happiness on the basis of their knowledge. But the result is apparent: in the effort to find satisfaction people only find unhappiness; in an effort to find peace, even more anxiety often results. It is difficult to find a person in this world who does not have concerns and worries. It is equally difficult to find one who has found peace and happiness and is free of suffering. Each human being is in the grip of physical, mental, or natural suffering. Even those who are wealthy, strong, gifted, beautiful, and bountiful, seem to be unhappy, and have to experience some form of suffering in their lives.

What is the cause of this unhappiness? Unless we are able to know the cause of a sickness, it will be impossible to find a cure for it.

Sant Kabir Sahab asks:

You have lost an object in one place and you are looking for it in an entirely different place. How could you possibly find it?

Let us consider this dilemma in view of the way people usually attempt to find peace, joy and contentment. People wander ceaselessly through life, always seeking to acquire material resources, thinking they will thus achieve their goal of happiness. However, as the saints tell us, even if we acquire all these physical possessions—status, fame, or wealth—we are still unable to attain true peace, joy and happiness. The peace we seek is not found in the outer material world but only in the inner world of the soul. The outer manifest world is merely sensory. It is transitory and ever fleeting. But within us lives the Supreme Being whose true form is peace and bliss. The Divine is unmanifest (without physical form), eternal, and beyond the senses. Only by turning inward and ceasing the outward wandering, will we be able to attain lasting joy and eternal peace.

We can understand this through an analogy: If we throw a rock towards the sky, we find that the rock must return to the earth. And, even though the rock is flying and tumbling through the air as though it is part of the air, it will, nevertheless, soon return to the earth, since it is part of the earth. It is as though the rock, which is a part of the earth, strains to come back to earth, and finds stillness in reuniting with the earth. In the same way, we can think of the human soul, as it wanders through multiple life forms: the Hindu scriptures speak of 84 hundred thousand life forms.¹ The soul will experience suffering in the cycle of death and rebirth (samsara)—reincarnation after reincarnation—until it merges into the Supreme Soul (Divine), which is inseparable from the soul. The Divine exists in the soundless state, but the living soul has descended into this realm of darkness.

Maharishi Mehi Paramhans advises to begin the journey:

You have descended into this darkness from the soundless state. You are now far from your home in the soundless Divine. You are caught here in this dark realm. Therefore, at this very moment, begin your journey homeward toward that soundless state.

Through inner meditation the jivatman (individual soul) begins its ascent toward the soundless state where it will eventually merge with the Divine. When the soul thus experiences oneness with the Divine, it will attain ultimate peace and supreme joy.

Santmat teaches a path to the attainment of this joy and peace. This is the significance of the way of saints and the importance of Santmat. 

Harmony of All Religions chapter3 what is dharma by Santsevi ji Maharaj

Unifying Principles in the Spiritual Path

Vedic dharma has its temples, Christianity its churches, and Islam its mosques. But the real temple is the heart. God is attained within: the path to God lies within one’s own self, as all the saints have taught this with unanimity. The inner path begins in Sushumana, ajana chakra (a place between two eyebrows).

One Faqir has said:

O aspirant! Why are you wandering aimlessly outward (in the mosques, churches, and temples)? The path lies within, begins in sushumna, for meeting with the beloved (Lord.)

Furthermore,

The deluded one does not understand that, although Mohammed is manifested and seen, Allah is unseen.

Sant Maharishi Mehi says:

Look for and search for God within yourself, within your own body. God resides in your heart—look for Him there. The white point shines straight ahead and twinkles. You must concentrate in sushumna by leaving the restlessness of the mind behind. Where the subtle sounds vibrate in the ajna chakra, stay and make your dwelling. The door is subtle and sushumna is the point or window. With great effort, you can go through.

In Reference to the Inner Spiritual Practice

The inner spiritual practices of the major dharmas or religions, though seemingly diverse, have the same purpose and goal. Japa and dhyāna exist in Christianity and Islam as well as Santmat founded in the Vedic dharma. In Islam they are know as zikar and fikar; in Christianity they are know as chanting and meditating. The beginning of dhyāna pertains to the physical form of the object of worship. The Sufis meditate on the form of their spiritual teacher (murshid) and forget their bodies, just as Sutikshna Muni became unaware of his body while meditating on Shri Ram as told in a story of Ramayana. By meditating, both become absorbed in their guru.

The practices similar to Driśti yoga and the yoga of Sound are described in the Sufi tradition, where they are known as saglenasira and sultanulajakar. Through these practices the sufi attains the divine states and ultimately merges in Allaha. Christian and Jewish mystics speak of experience the References to experiencing the divine glory and divine sound as well.

The experience of Divine Light and Divine Sound are the arms of God which embrace the aspirant who practices them, as a child is embraced by the two arms of his father.

Lighting oil lamps in the temples, churches, and mosques, ringing bells, singing, praying out loud to extend our voice to God—these are all symbols of the inner experiences of divine light and sound.

Throughout this book, references to Mānas japa, Mana, dhyāna and Driśti sadhana and Nadanusandhan (Sound yoga) are given. In general, all sacred traditions have these four practices, differently named, differently emphasized, perhaps, but still present. This progression of practices is a clearly marked path to God and is open to all—it does not discriminate among people of different races, religions, or sex (male or female).

The water of the ocean rises up in mist to form clouds. Then the clouds rain on the tops of the mountains, but it cannot stand still there. It rolls down into small rivers, which merge with large rivers, and finally makes its way back to the ocean. Then the water is no longer known as “river” it becomes the ocean. In the same way, the individual soul, having separated from God, wanders through 8,400,000 forms of life^xxii. Once the soul has received true instruction from a genuine teacher, and practices the four forms of meditation diligently, it finally realizes God and becomes one with Him. The cycle of birth and death then comes to an end.

Goswami Tulsidas says:

As the water of a river merges with the ocean and becomes one with it, so the individual [in God] leaves the cycle of birth and death.

Santmat teaches and spreads this knowledge of how one can find and merge with God. This tradition is not based on any one particular saint. Santmat is an ocean, a universal tradition. In the ocean many different rivers are merged. In the same way, the voices of all the saints become one voice.

Goswami Tulsidas says,

Santmat is the unified way of all saints. It is devoid of discrimination and supported by the Vedas, Puranas, and sacred texts.

Caste and class do not exist in Santmat. In it Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Bahai’s are all brothers and sisters. Santmat understands the world to be one family and therefore, Santmat unifies and harmonizes all spiritual traditions. It is hoped that by reading this book, the reader will reach the conclusion: Within the various religious traditions of the world there exists the one essential Truth and similar essential practices. The

various dharmas are in essence one Dharma, and the path for anyone who wishes to reach God is one.

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Author :  Santmat Society of North America 2006

Harmony of All Religions chapter2 what is dharma by Santsevi ji Maharaj

The Inner Journey Involves Reversing the Consciousness Current

In the 20^th century the great Sage Maharishi Mehi compared the ascending of consciousness to a fish swimming upstream. The mind must go inward, which is the reverse of its usual and easy outward path. Just as the fish struggles against the current, so an equal effort must be made to go against the current of the mind. By going inward against the current of the mind, one will experiences the divine joy.

In the words of Shri Maharishi Mehi:

The stream of celestial nectar is flowing from the subtle canal of the sushumna nerve. Like a fish the consciousness current is moving upstream”.^xiv Like a fish making its way upstream, the mind with consciousness must be recollected in concentration. (This will seem to the mind a difficult and “unnatural” course!)

But how exactly is this concentration accomplished? [It is accomplished by going within with intense focus.] To understand this, we must illustrate examples from the physical substances. Whenever a physical substance is gathered in one place, as it becomes concentrated, [as it is gathered in a pile] it moves upward, whether the substance is a solid, a liquid, or a gas. The more subtle substance is more pervasive, its movement is faster, and it is capable of moving higher: water is more subtle than ice, steam than water, and electric current or lightning is even subtler than steam.

The mind is inconceivably more subtle and faster than even the speed of light. Physicists have told us that the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second. We can see light, but one does not see the mind. This is something to ponder: How fast can the mind travel when it is collected and concentrated instead of being spread and dispersed in the external world? Now consider that consciousness is even more subtle than the mind and permeates it just as radio waves travel through physical objects. When collected, consciousness is of unimaginable speed. This is the force of the soul which is capable of reaching God.

The Methods for Returning to the Divine Source

As butter permeates milk, so consciousness permeates the mind. When the mind becomes concentrated so does the current of consciousness which permeates ones body and mind. Therefore, the Saints have taught us ways to withdraw and concentrate the mind within. Maharishi Mehi elaborates on this in the Philosophy of Liberation. The following references are particularly worth studying:

In whatever realm of this universe one lives, it is natural to get the support from the predominate element of that realm.^xv Therefore, one who is dwelling in the physical realm will naturally take support from material elements (methods utilizing sensory elements).^xvi To begin to concentrate the mind, one should make use of Mānas japa (mental repetition of the spoken name of God), and Mānas dhyāna (focusing on a physical manifested form of God). God permeates all realms of nature and the entire universe. The saints, prophets, sages, all radiant and all benevolent beings are myriad physical manifestations of the Divine Powers on earth. Fixing their image in the mind (Mānas dhyāna; focus on a divine form) facilitates concentration of the mind and prepares it to enter into the inner subtle realms. In order to enter into the subtle realms, one must take support of the subtle element. One should therefore, practice taking support of the subtle (non-material) element. Subtle support is “the infinitesimal point”. This point is visualized in the middle of two eye-brows. The infinitesimal point is also known as the subtlest of the subtle forms of God. Bindu (point) is defined as an indivisible point. It is too minute to be drawn or indicated in any physical way. Driśti yoga, the yoga of vision is concentration on (literally “seeing”) this infinitesimal point. Driśti is the power of seeing. By uniting the beams of vision of both eyes, and focusing on a single point in the center and concentrating the mind on that point single pointedness is attained. This is known as Driśti Yoga. In this practice it is advised neither to focus forcefully nor manipulate the eyeballs in any manner. The saints teach specifics of this yogic technique. By this practice the inner divine vision is opened. This is beyond the sensory dimension of seeing. When the state of one-pointedness (complete focus) of mind is attained, it is possible to listen to the divine inner sounds which arise from the juncture of the material and subtle realms. These celestial sounds are not audible to the sensory ears. When the subtle state is reached, it becomes possible to perceive the divine sounds of the subtle realm. Now this sound has the inherent quality of attracting the consciousness to its point of origin. Once that sound is perceived, consciousness is drawn to the sounds of each successive and ascending realm until consciousness reaches the soundless realm. This is the realm of God (shbadatita). To achieve this, service to and association with a Sat Guru, as well as his grace and blessings, are essential. The practitioner must also be diligent in practice. The path described above can be summarized in the following manner. The four practices are gross to subtle in an ascending order: Mānas japa, Mānas dhyāna, Dirśti yoga, Nadanusandhana (Sound yoga), and the Soundless yoga. The practice of Mānas japa (mantra) and Mānas dhyāna is the worship of the physical, qualified (personal) form of God (God perceived in various manifestations of name and form in the gross realm); the practice of the meditation on the infinitesimally small point is the worship of the subtle qualified form of God (God perceived as the infinitesimal point); concentration on divine sounds (other than Sār Śabad, the Divine Sound of the beginning, Word, Logos) is the worship of the qualified formless Divine. And, finally, meditation on the Sār Śabad (the Original Divine Sound) is worship of the Unqualified-Formless (the transcendent Godhead). This is the culmination of all forms of worship. But without completely mastering all these practices and treading the inward journey, it will be impossible to reach the Soundless state (the realization of the Impersonal form of the Divine). This is the Realm of God and the attainment of mokśa. This is the state of liberation, a state of absolute peace.

Understanding the Twofold Nature of the Divine and the Material Substance

What do qualified and unqualified mean when applied to God? The Prashna Upanishad states that in the beginning God created prana, that is, Hiranyagharba. This is known as the world egg or primal matter [germ from which the perishable beings take place]^xvii. That Divine Essence is beyond any distinctions and is without qualities (gunas).^xviii

The gunas exist only in the manifested universe. The essential being of God is beyond these three qualities.^xix God (Brahman), the Primal Being, is Unqualified (Nirguna Brahman); the secondary (personal) Being (Saguna Brahman) is qualified.

The Bhagavad-Gita says:

There are two beings (purushas) in this world, the perishable and the imperishable. The perishable is all these existences (comprises all creatures), and the unchanging (jivātman) is the imperishable. But other than these, the Highest Spirit is known as the Supreme Self (paramatman) who, as the Undying Lord, enters the three worlds and sustains them (15:16-17).

The Highest Spirit is the most distinct from the two beings (purushas). Prakriti (Nature, Material substance) in its primal state is congruous. In this primal state, sattva, rajas, and tamas stay in perfect balance. They represent three distinct actions: Creation, sustenance, and destruction. These three, the cosmic attributes or the gunas are represented by three manifestation of the Personal God (manifested God): Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Sustainer, and Shiva the Destroyer.

Sant Kabir says,

The infinite impersonal supreme God is a tree. The three Lords (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva) are the branches of that tree, and the leaves sprouting from the branches are the world

Just as the three gunas arose from the Creator; and just as the world arose from the gunas; so from one absolute Dharma (the Absolute Truth; the Way), a kind of proto-religion which exists at the very basis of creation, there arose three separate dharmas, Sanatana Dharma (Vedic)^xx, Judeo-Christian, and Islam, the three most prevalent religions in the world. These three dharmas, though they may seem divergent in various external ways, are related in the same way as the leaves of a tree which arise from and are nourished by the same source.

The Holy Koran sheds light on the ultimate unity of the Truth:

In the beginning all people were of one community. Later people created different convictions and paths” (Koran 11.10). And “in the beginning people were on one Path (Koran 2.2).

Sanatana Dharma is oldest of the major dharmas, followed by the Judeo-Christian, and finally Islamic dharmas. Due to differences of geography, culture, and language, these three religions appear different, but in fact, they are leaves on one tree. The belief in the unity of God is the great theme of the major religions.

As the Rig Veda says:

Truth is one; sages speak of it in different ways.

The teachings of all dharmas, Vedic, Judeo-Christian, Islamic, as well as of the texts of the saints, great religious scholars and poets, emphasize this fundamental oneness of Truth.

In the Katha Upanishad Yama explains this mystery to Nachiketas:

As the one air has entered the world and becomes varied in form corresponding to the shape of the form of every object, so the one Inner Soul of all things becomes varied according to whatever form, and also exists outside (5/13).

The Divine Essence permeates all beings yet transcends them.

Shri Ram teaches this to Hanumanji:

Oh, son of the Wind! Without sound, without touch, without form, without taste, without smell, and without name or caste, as the destroyer of all misery—this form of mine you should meditate on always (Muktikopanishad, 72).

Lord Krishna, in the Bhagavad -Gita, advises Arjuna to meditate upon his form beyond the perishable and imperishable, which is Absolute and One. The Koran is also filled with references to the unity of God. And the Lord’s prayer, the most common prayer of Christianity, addresses God as our Father, the Father common to us all.^xxi The following are the quotes from different saints which only reaffirm the oneness of God:

Sant Kabir Sahib says:

My great Lord is one; I dare not say two. If I say two, this pleases not my Lord.

Guru Nanak Dev says:

There is only one Lord, the great Lord. By seeing His unity one is blessed with all treasures.

Sant Dadudyal says:

I found the beginning and the end within [my heart] and now this mind does not go elsewhere. Now Dadu is colored in the color of the One and is absorbed in that One.

Sant Sundar Das says:

One God resides in the heart of each and every person. Why don’t you meditate on that one God? That God helps you overcome misery. Why do you forget that Lord? Four kinds of wealth are with him, eight kinds of siddhis (attainments), and nine kinds of treasure can be obtained from Him. People who pray to any other than this great God have mouths full of dust [wasting away lives], warns Sundar.

Goswami Tulsidas says:

The One [Supreme Being] is unspoken, without form, without name, without birth, the abode of knowledge and bliss.

Sant Surdas says:

If the mind wants to find God, it should leave the outward trappings of texts and external worship. Abandon texts and ceremonies; and be truthful in thoughts, words, and deeds! Then one will see the true Lord within one’s own self. 

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  Author :  Santmat Society of North America 2006