What is that Maya ?

What is that māyā? Māyā means to plan how to become materially happy. This is māyā. All the people of the world, they are simply making plan how they will be happy within this material world. That's all. This is māyā. The history of the whole world studied, it is experience that the Roman Empire planned, the British Empire planned, the... So many empires, they flourish sometimes. All fail. The Britishers, they were, two hundred years ago, they were planning to rule over this vast land of America. George Washington declared independence; their plan failed. Similarly, in India they were planning to exploit. Now Gandhi's movement made it fail. So this is bigger plan. Similarly smaller plan also. There are many... Individually, we make so many plans that "I shall be happy in this way, in that way, in that way." So this plan-making business is māyā, because that will never be successful. Trace out the history of the whole world. Nobody has become happy.

(Talk, Initiation Lecture, and Ten Offenses Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 1, 1968)