EMBODIMENT OF THE SOUL

Yadidam kichha jagat sarvam praneyajati nihsrutam ||

  “All the animate and the inanimate objects of this universe are nothing but the results of the vibrations of prana. This vibration of the prana is the cause of phenomenal world the cosmic life-principle.”

    The jiva, as pure energy- prana, the motive power was freely moving about as a photon, particle of Light-Energy in space. It entered the realms of the earth’s atmosphere and started an eternal journey as a jiva on this earth. Thus all the problems of the jiva started with the embodiment of the soul. The Soul is an alien that entered the earth as an energy particle. Even the Earth is a planet of solar origin and has no independent existence. That way, even the effulgent Sun depends on something else, some other higher power, for its sustenance. Thus, everything is depending on something or the other, and each one sacrifices itself to create the other. This is explained as the concept of ‘Sacrifice’, yajnya, in the Veda [See Shvetashvatara Upanishad).

  Supremacy of prana is evident from the following:

These organs, disputing about which organ was superior among them, went to Prajapati and asked: Which one amongst us is the most excellent (vasishtha)? He said: That one among you is the most excellent by whose departure this body is considered to suffer most. The organ of speech departed. After being absent for a whole year it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs said: We lived just as dumb people live, without speaking through the tongue, but living through the vital breath, seeing through the eye, hearing through the ear, knowing through the mind and procreating through the organ of generation. Then the organ of speech entered the body. The eye departed. After being absent for a whole year it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs said: We lived just as blind people live, without seeing through the eye, but living through the vital breath, speaking through the organ of speech, hearing through the ear, knowing through the mind and procreating through the organ of generation. Then the eye entered the body. The ear went out. After being absent for a whole year it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs said: We lived just as deaf people live, without hearing through the ear, but living through the vital breath, speaking through the organ of speech, seeing through the eye, knowing through the mind and procreating through the organ of generation. Then the ear entered the body. The mind went out. After being absent for a whole year it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs said: We lived just as idiots live, without knowing through the mind, but living through the vital breath, speaking through the organ of speech, seeing through the eye, hearing through the ear and procreating through the organ of generation. Then the mind entered the body. Then the organ of generation went out. After being absent for a whole year it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs said: We lived just as impotent people live, without procreating children through the organ of generation, but living through the vital breath, speaking through the organ of speech, seeing through the eye, hearing through the ear and knowing through the mind. Then the organ of generation entered the body. Then as the vital breath was about to depart, it uprooted the organs from their places just as a great, noble horse of the Sindhu country tears up the pegs to which his feet are tied. They said: Venerable Sir, please do not go out. We shall not be ableto live without you. If I am such, then give me an offering. So be it. The organ of speech said: That attribute of being most excellent which I possess is yours. The eye said: That attribute of steadiness which I possess is yours. The ear said: That attribute of prosperity which I possess is yours. The mind said: That attribute of being an abode which I possess is yours. The organ of generation said: That attribute of procreation which I possess is yours. Then the vital breath said: If I am such, then what will be my food and what will be my dress? They replied: Whatever food there is-including that of dogs, worms, insects and moths-will be your food and water will be your dress. He who knows the food of the vital breath to be such never happens to eat anything or accept anything that is not food. Wise men who are versed in the Vedas therefore take a sip of water Just before and after eating; they think that thereby they remove the nakedness of the vital breath. [Yajurveda, Brihadaranyaka Upanishad VI, I-The Supremacy of the Prana, 7-14].

   Let’s see how prana enters the jiva and it begins its journey on earth as a child and lives and works in different stages till its old age and death. The stage-by-stage development of the embryo from the day of conception, month-by-month, has been recorded several centuries ago by great physicians like Charaka, Sushruta, Chakrapani. Now, the modern text books of gynaecology give more vivid details. However, none of these explain why and how the jiva took a particular form, or when and how the prana and prajnya entered the embryonic cell to make it a jiva. It could as well be a tumor! Entry of any external substance is resisted by the body as a rule. A tumor may give an impression of a child taking its form and may get aborted, too. Under these circumstances, it may be asked, “How did the sperm enter the resistant egg and grow into a child, acquire prana, manas, buddhi, ahankar (ego), gunas, and such other invisible strong forces that determine the course of its life? How does mind operate throughout the period existence of the Jiva without being tired and exhausted? Where did the Atma come from and when exactly did it enter the jiva to become a jivatman. Where does it exist? What is the cause of this embodiment? Medical books do not consider these extraneous invisible spiritual aspects since they deal only with the visible Matter. Even space within egg-cell, or the DNA, RNA, the amino acids, proteins, vitamins, and enzymes, genes, chromosomes, etc. have enormous space within to vibrate, intelligence and knowledge to operate, multiply, transfer information, react and evolve in a matter of a split-second! These are beyond the grasp of human mind, too. Vedanta gives a better explanation of these as the five basic elements like akasha, vayu, agni, jala, and pruthivi as the manifest Brahman. These generic terms have far deeper meaning than what is understood by us.

  Thre are a number of scriptures that give us some idea about the origin of life and the varied forms that we find on earth, including the birds and the aquatics and the amphibians. One such is found in Rk Veda, and another in the Shaivagama Shastra. Shiva only becomes a jiva, visits the earth to see how His creation works, and reverts to his prior state via yoga. Supreme Lord is sovereign. He can assume any form anywhere at any time and may appear and disappear anytime anywhere or everywhere at the same time! None can question Him since He only inhabits the body as the Soul. He is the Self of all. He arrives here, uses the jiva as a taxi, drives around, finally leaves it on the roadside and disappears! Then, who am I? Where is the doubt?

   Life is still a mystery. The cell division, mutation and genes theories may not explain the secrets behind the creation. The chemical composition of the DNA and the RNA may be well known, but the energy and intelligence aspects inherent in these chemical entities are not known. Generally, intelligence is attributed to the omniscience and omnipotence of the Soul, the Atman. The ancient scriptures make it amply clear that the Lord only takes a journey in different forms of life to experience the qualities of His creation. And, as such it is extremely difficult to solve the mystery of a single sperm from father growing into a child in the mother single cell acquiring all the qualities of the parents and still possessing individuality of its own! Science will not give answers here. It is the subject matter of spiritual science where Matter is not yet created. Matter comes into being only when Spirit yields into it. Matter may not exist but Spirit is always there. This is not something that can be told in concrete form, by words; even thoughts fail here. It is a vast and deep field of internal sacrifice (antaryajnya). One should experience it himself in a state of transcendental meditation. This is how the Truth is realized. There is no place for discussion or argument here. In fact, this is the journey of the solitary soul. There is no second person involved here. Adhyatma-vidya concerns with the knowledge of one’s understanding- Knowledge of one’s Self, the Atman.

   After all, who is that ‘That’(‘tyat’), which comes and goes here? One only vibrates as many. Everything is a mystery. The chances of a speck of stardust (hydrogen ion) entering the earth’s magnetic field is a remote possibility. Only 0.2% of electromagnetic waves, radiation in the form of Wavicles, reach the tiny earth’s surface as sunrays; the angle of incidence of sunrays on the earth that is always rotating and revolving in space is also to be considered here! The particle of Light, photon, or hydrogen ions to move into the solar sphere and reach the earth’s surface via the clouds, rain, soil and later on joined by nitrogen, carbon, oxygen, phosphorus, sulphur, sodium, etc. become the amino acids, proteins, vitamins, enzymes, DNA, RNA etc. in food and enter the body of the parents. This entire process is just a chance that can be imagined in the least! These are explained at best by probability theories!

  The wise men said, “This gift of life in human form should not be squandered in mere eating, sleeping and sport.” Still we beam with joy and pride when a prize, an award, a certificate of merit is given to us, and praised for our ignorance! Even writing a book is display of ignorance. The jiva is so ignorant that it never realizes in its lifetime the fact that the Truth is inexplicable. It (the Jiva) is inherently of a divine origin and the inexplicable entity that shines within  is none other than the brahmn. This is the reason why somebody said, “lo, there goes the man who is a celebrity, well known all over the world. But, alas! He himself does not know who he is! There is no greater tragedy than this.” 

   The Jiva is a life-form and it is called an animal, a prani, due to the inherent life-force, prana in it. It (the jiva) is endowed with Energy, chaitanya and thus it works and moves as a prani (animal). All forms of jiva including the humans are animals that possess certain properties like birth, growth, reproduction, mobility, creativity, etc. However, it is subject to disease, death and decay.

   “All that is born have to die” – jatasya hi maranam dhruvam | is the fundamental principle and the earth is called the realm of death, the death knell (‘mrutyukupa’). There is no escape from death here. Birth and death are the two pints between which life goes on. This short period of life of the jiva on this earth is called ‘Time’ (kaala) and the art of living in a sane and sensible manner is ‘jivan-kalaa’. The jiva starts its journey of a life span of about a hundred years (or a little more in rare cases), o this earth from its day of birth and ends at its death. But, the most intriguing part of this jiva is that it contains within it an invisible particle of Energy (prana) called the Atman (Soul). This is neither created nor destroyed. It always exists as the core of the substance. It moves in and out of substances. It is the spiritual component of the jiva. It is called the Soul (English cousin), a poor substitute to the term ‘Atman’ (Samsk.). The term ‘Atman’ has deeper esoteric meaning and purport and its understanding takes one as far as the ultimate- paramatman, Brahman. Although nobody has seen Atman (since it is invisible) its presence needs no proof. The jiva is sustained by it. It is this invisible spiritual entity that builds an elemental body around itself just like silkworm weaves a cocoon around itself and hibernates till it makes a small hole in it and flies out as a butterfly in beautiful colours. Thus, the body woven by the Soul is only a physical part of it, an elemental part acquired from the earth (soil and water). In the course of its formation, a jiva with its Atman (jivatman) weaves around itself many invisible sheaths of power such as: the Food (annam), life-force (prana), the mind, the intellect, and the blissful sheaths. These five sheaths or envelopes cover the Atman. The outer cover is the food sheath and the inner-most is the blissful sheath. Besides these sheaths there manifests certain qualities of the jiva depending on the quality of the food eaten to support the physical body such as the tamasic, rajasic, and sattvic foods with different food values such as the nutrients- vitamins, proteins, starch, fibres and colours, tastes, etc. The three dominating factors that affect the jiva are the ego, the intellect, and the mind- called the inner instruments (antahkarana). When the person dies only his physical component is cast off. The rest all are left intact! These form the seed for next birth.