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Salt doll and sea story blends with dissolving into divine meditation; 'स्वरूपशून्यम्' (Svarupashunyam) of Yogasutra 3.3 blends with dissolving into nothingness

Given below are some extracts from Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba discourse, Summer Course, 16-6-1977, https://sssbpt.info/ssspeaks/volume13/sss13-33.pdf (slightly edited to fix typo kind of errors): Yoga means union or yoking, and the jeevaathma (The Individual Soul) has to be yoked with the Paramaathman (Supreme Soul); one has to find its fulfilment in the Whole, of which it is a part. As the rivers carry the waters of the sea back into the sea itself, happy to lose the limitations of their names, their size etc. in that consummation, so the individual merges into the Universal. That is Yoga. It is Yoga that happens to the salt doll that is dropped into the depths of the sea to calculate the depth of the water. The salt too comes from the sea and becomes one with the sea. ... The aajnaa chakra on the mid-brow spot is the embodiment of vijnaana---the Splendour of Aware-ness---for when this chakra is reached, man glimpses the Truth, gets transformed and becomes translucent. It is only a...
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Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi terms: Links with Sanskrit, Hindi and English translations of related 3 key verses from Patanjali Yogasutra; Related FB posts

The links of patanjaliyogasutra.in site given below have nice Sanskrit and Hindi explanation of related 3 key verses from Patanjali Yogasutra. I think the English translations in the site could be better. Dharana: Verse 3.1, https://patanjaliyogasutra.in/vibhooti-pada-3-1/ [Sanskrit: देशबन्धश्चित्तस्य धारणा ] Dhyana: Verse 3.2, https://patanjaliyogasutra.in/vibhooti-pada-3-2/ [Sanskrit: तत्र प्रत्ययैकतानता ध्यानम् ] Samadhi: Verse 3.3, https://patanjaliyogasutra.in/vibhooti-pada-3-3/ [Sanskrit: ‌तदेवार्थमात्रनिर्भासं स्वरूपशून्यमिव समाधिः ] [Due to copyright, I am not sharing the Hindi and English text from the above site. The Sanskrit text surely must be out of copyright and so I have shared it.] This book seems to be out of copyright: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, by Charles Johnston, [1912], at sacred-texts.com, https://sacred-texts.com/hin/ysp/ysp06.htm . Its English translations for the verses are: Dharana: Verse 3.1, [Sanskrit: देशबन्धश्चित्तस्य धारणा ] English: The binding o...
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Why did I not do any paid work for the last 22 years? Am I happy doing software development work (paid or voluntary) now?

Last updated on 8 Mar 2025 This post is in the context of my recent post on another blog: Restarted my commercial work career from payment received point of view, after a gap of 22 years,  https://raviswdev.blogspot.com/2025/03/restarted-my-commercial-work-career.html . A relevant extract from that post is given below: I recently received a commercial work payment from a friend for whom I have been doing a short-term software development assignment related to LinkedIn OAuth 2.0 with OpenID Connect login for a React frontend and AWS Java lambda backend app. I started that work as a two-week part-time free trial followed by a paid period. My last work related payment received was in early Sep. 2002. So my friend's payment has restarted my commercial work career from payment received point of view, after a gap of 22 years and around 6 months! --- end extract from my post on another blog --- This post has been triggered by some comments/questions I received on this matter. I thou...
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Referral: Very satisfied with return to software industry work after 22 years for development of ReactJS frontend ...

Readers may want to look at a recent post I put up on another blog of mine: Very satisfied with return to software industry work after 22 years for development of ReactJS frontend web app for an NGO educational portal, https://raviswdev.blogspot.com/2024/12/very-satisfied-with-return-to-software.html .
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Key aspects of my current sadhana (spiritual practice) over past quite a few months

Thought I should share the key aspects of my current sadhana (spiritual practice) which I have been following over past quite a few months. Perhaps it may be of interest to some spiritual aspirant(s) now or later on. Namasmarana and prayer to Sai Baba (both Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba and Bhagavan Sri Shirdi Sai Baba) is an important component which has increased over these past months. Namasmarana is mainly Om Sai Ram or Sai Ram but sometimes some other names of / references to God. In meditation with form aspect, I focus on merger into Swami's (Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba's) lotus feet. This component has also increased over these past months. In formless meditation, the main components are centering on my core being (changeless beingness-I/awareness-I observer/witness), and focusing on merger into formless God viewing the beingness-I as being a tiny part of formless God. So beingness-I is a sort-of pathway to formless God. Time spent on this has reduced over past months bu...
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Referral: Gita web app (Next.js, open source) v1.4.1: Improved User Interface including in Settings page; Notes for students & self-learners

Last updated on 6 Sep. 2024 Readers may want to vist my updated post on another blog: Gita web app (Next.js, open source) v1.4.1: Improved User Interface including in Settings page; Notes for students & self-learners .  Some 'Quick Info' from it: Web App deployed at:  https://gita-rsi.vercel.app/ Github repo of web app:  https://github.com/ravisiyer/gita
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Bhagavad Gita 3:17: The person who rejoices in, and is content with, the Atma/Self

यस्त्वात्मरतिरेव स्यादात्मतृप्तश्च मानवः। आत्मन्येव च सन्तुष्टस्तस्य कार्यं न विद्यते।।3.17।।   - Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3, Verse 17: https://gita-rsi.vercel.app/verse/136 But for that man who rejoices only in the Self, who is satisfied with the Self and is content in the Self alone, indeed there is nothing to do. - Translation in English by Swami Sivananda -------- But the man whose delight is only in the Self, who is satisfied with the Self, who rejoices in the Self, for him nothing remains to be accomplished. - Translation in English by Swami Adidevananda -------- Ravi: IMHO, the key words in this verse about Atma are: Atma rathihi - rejoice in the Self (alone/only) Atma thrupthaha - content in the Self Atma santhushtah - satisfied in the Self (alone/only) IMHO, such an attainment where a person rejoices in, and is content with, the Atma/Self alone/only (and does not desire anything else (for himself/herself)), is an awesome spiritual achievement. [The person may still pray for h...
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