Reality of the Objective World

  The phenomenal objective world does not exist outside the limits of time, space, and causation. All objects fill in space and space is created by the movement of time, as also, time is creted by the radiation of electromagnetice waves from the sun. Thus, Time that is created by radiation is a myth since there is nothing like 'what we call space'. Space is empty, vast, deep and endless! How can that which is endless, beginningless ever exist in between? The concept of time that creates space and objects that are deteriorating over time, that fill in the illusory space, makes creation itself an illusion. Illusion of illusion is delusion. We the humans are ignorant as to the nature of all these space, time, and causality and the true nature of existence. We re disillusioned at the end since whatever we aspire, dream, attai becomes meaningless due to the limitations set by time, space and cause and effect. Everything that we desire, material wealth, name and fame, health and happiness, family and friends- all are subject to limitations of time and disappear or deteriorate in course of time due to the 'law of entropy'. A strong well designed building is bound to be dilapidated over time despite the strong steel, cement, bricks and stones! Humans, too, are bound to get old and die in course of time. There is nothing that does not wear out, decay and disintegrate over time. "All that is born should die", is the rule, So, "what was not there before' and 'what shall not be there after' is not real". Only that which endures over time, that which never perish, die or deteriorate, that which doe not come within the limitations of time, space, causality, or maya only is the 'truth', 'sat'. Such an immortal, unborn, eternal 'sat' is called brahmn, and that brahmn does not exists, and it is everywhere. Learned sages said, akasha is brahmn. Akash is nothing but it holds everything. Now, the scietist say, this aksh is also matter, hence it may not be the brahmn. However, brahmn manifest as material world including space (akash), air, fire, water, earth, living beings and non-living beings like the elements, compounds and complex systems of material world, too. Everything is brahmn. This is the 'principle of existence' in a mortal world, a world limited by time. Time eats away everything. The time gap eats away, wear out our joy of attainment, achievements, possessions and our desires will never be fulfilled to our satisfaction.Bhagavan Shree Krishna says, "I am time and I devour everything!" (kaalo'smi....). 

   We should not be in an illusion as to the 'reality of our existence (temporal)'; our existence here is purely temporal. We are bound to exit anytime! Everything that comes to us also disappear! There is a limitation, duration, span of life or shelf life set by time for everything here.
(to be contd.).

Seven Steps to Kaivalya

Kaivalya, kailasa, vaikunta, param pada, or whatever one chooses, could be reached slowly, step by step, raising in our consciousness from muladhara to sahasrara. These attainments are within us, not somewhere else- above or below, going left or right. Moreover, it may be surprising if it is said that 'there is nothing like kaivalya' for its is 'one's self' only. Whoever is established in his/her elf is already there! This is the seat of absolutely peace, happiness, and joy forever. It is also independent of any external support, alambana. It is nirupadhika. It is attained by just keeping absolutely quiet.

  Now, it is not to be attained by putting any effort. It should be on its own. It is not by acquiring, but by disposing of, letting go. When one has dropped what all that  has been acquired from the day one , entered this earth as a particle of 'Energy', photon, stellar dust particle, the job is done! It is all about cleansing the pollutants attached to the pristine soul as a blemish, stain, as upadhi. A red flower adoring the white crystal makes the crystal exhibit red colour! so also, other colours, qualities (guna), prakruti, render their colour,guna to soul. When the coloured flower is removed it comes out in its original pure form. So also, the soul that is covered by all five koshas, three gunas, and arishadvargas exhibit the quality such so and so. But, the moment these blemishes are removed it again shines, gives light. It is like the coloured shades we put to our electric bulbs and grumble 'it is not bright enough to see or read'! It is like drawing curtain at noon and sleep only to find that it is already night when we get up! We create darkness at noon, exhibit ignorance even when we are intelligent and knowledgeable. The soul shines in its true nature as sacchidananda when its coverings of attachments, desire, greed, anger, and other blemishes, acquired gunas, qualities, are removed.

Spiritual and the Material

One can exist at different levels of Consciousness and it is only this 'Consciousness' that matters. This 'consciousness itself is maya, a trick, a con played by knowledge on us. Our knowledge is limited. We all think and talk as if we know, whereas, actually we do not know anything! What all we know is from what we have heard, seen, read or experienced by senses buddhi, manas that are limited. We do not understand many things because we do not have the capacity to understand! There are subtler, finer, invisible things, substances, forces that evade us. So we do not know. So this limitation is 'maya' or niyati. Time, space and causality are the factors that create limitations. Once we overcome these limitations by yoga, transcend these by meditation, we can clearly understand the truth.

  As regards the material world, the phenomenal objective world is illusory. It(the material success) is causing disappointment due to the limitations. There is a gap between the time we desire and we achieve and the time gap eats away the joy of attainment. So, nothings transient, governed by time, space, cause and effect can give us happiness. Moreover, we all live an artificial life, wearing a mask,and it is of 'no significance at the end'. ll are just a small faculty members- a doctor, engineer, scientist, advocate, and the like. Even a Chemistry scholar is specialisedin either organic, inorganic or biochemistry and nothing more than that. What if one gets a Nobel prize, a scroll of paper and a million dollars if one is to die unconscious? It is of no consequence. Many scientists, Nobel Laureates have come and gone, but not one who 'realized soul' is there It is the spiritual attainment that is fulfilling, satisfying, and redeeming at the end.

  Now, as to all our pursuits, we are given schooling and rudimentary education and training to eke out a living and that is not the purpose of born a human. There is something larger than life, some thing more than just eking out a living. We are not born here for just eating, sleeping, entertainment and die in ignorance. It is to realize the true nature of existence that one has to strive in this life.

  There are the devi devata and tapojanaa who are struggling to attain to brahmn, the ultimate reality; but, it is only the humans who can easily attain it! one may attain to this ultimate param padam, the highest seat of brahmn in a matter of a sec.! It is this secret that one has to get from an attained person, a guru. A guru will ot actually reveal the secret! But he makes you realize it by a mere touch, sight, or wish through a magic sound, word- the mantra. Mantra deeksha is important, in fact very essential for attainment to spiritual heights. There are several levels of this, too. 

   Once, all the sages performed yajnya for five days and nights in order to see Narayana since they had heard that there is only one God Narayana. At the end they were disappointed since no Narayana came! Narada was standing there smiling. They all asked him why their yajnya did not yield result. Narada said, "There is so far none who has seen 'Narayama;. I only utter His name. It seems those in "go loka' have seen Him. They all went to Go loka(galaxy) 'ksheer path' (Milky Way). There, the stars pointed out to a farthest point, beyond! When they reached the farthest point of brahmanda through their tapas shakti, they could see through 'inner eye' the glowing paramatman who laughed at them and said, "Fools, you have struggled so hard and come so far to see what is 'within' you! Who do you think who breathes in you? Who do you think who gave prerana to see Me? Who do you think you are? But for Me in all, as the Self of all', there is nothing. All that is will be are Myself and none else!" 

  Thus, what we seek is our Se;f, amd there exists nothing but Self. This knowledge of the self redeems the jivatman, who is free but thinks he is in bondage and struggles to get liberated. It is all in one's mind and nothing and nowhere ellse. This awareness of self is pure Consciousness, 'chit', chetasa, chaitanya, chiti, fire, knowledge, light, intelligence, life-force, prana..

Supremacy of Prana

Once all the sense organs and the mind quarreled and claimed supremacy. Then, the Lord asked them to take a year's rest and see how the jiva lives! If the jiva can survive without you, the matter is settled. The one by one they left the jiva for a year; let's see what happened.  

    The organ of speech departed. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as dumb people live, without speaking, but breathing with the prana (nose), seeing with the eye, hearing with the ear and thinking with the mind. Then the organ of speech entered the body.

     The eye departed. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as blind people live, without seeing, but breathing with the prana, speaking with the tongue, hearing with the ear and thinking with the mind. Then the eye entered the body. The ear went out. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as deaf people live, without hearing, but breathing with the prana. Speaking with the tongue, seeing with the eye, and thinking with the mind.

     Then the ear entered the body. The mind went out. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just like children whose minds are not yet formed, without thinking with the mind, but breathing with the prana, speaking with the tongue, seeing with the eye and hearing with the ear. Then the mind entered the body.

  Then as the vital breath was about to depart, he uprooted the organs from their places just as a noble horse tears up the pegs to which its feet are tied. They came to him and said: Revered Sir, be thou our lord; thou art the best among us. Do not depart from us.[Sama Veda, Chan. Upa. V, I - The Supremacy of the Prana, 8 -12].

Prana is superior to all the sense organs and mind

Once all the sense organs and the mind quarreled and claimed supremacy. Then, the Lord asked them to take a year's rest and see how the jiva lives! If the jiva can survive without you, the matter is settled. The one by one they left the jiva for a year; let's see what happened.  

The organ of speech departed. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as dumb people live, without speaking, but breathing with the prana (nose), seeing with the eye, hearing with the ear and thinking with the mind. Then the organ of speech entered the body.

The eye departed. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as blind people live, without seeing, but breathing with the prana, speaking with the tongue, hearing with the ear and thinking with the mind. Then the eye entered the body. The ear went out. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just as deaf people live, without hearing, but breathing with the prana. Speaking with the tongue, seeing with the eye, and thinking with the mind.

Then the ear entered the body. The mind went out. After being away for a whole year, it came back and said: How have you been able to live without me? The other organs replied: We lived just like children whose minds are not yet formed, without thinking with the mind, but breathing with the prana, speaking with the tongue, seeing with the eye and hearing with the ear. Then the mind entered the body.[Sama Veda, Chan. Upa. V, I - The Supremacy of the Prana, 8- 11]

Relationship

   The world is like a ship where al living beings are sailing in the 'Ocean of Sansara' (sansara sagara). The purpose of all the passengers on this ship is only for the single purpose- "crossing the ocean". These passengers are bound to each other by 'desire' and 'fear'. The desire is to cross and fear is of the stormy sea. However, there is nothing to bind them when they cross the ocean; they are all free and they go away on their own. Nobody is bound by anybody in this world. Thus, the relation ship exists as long as there are the ship and an ocean, Sri Krishnanandaji of Shivananda Ashram, Rishikesh says, "All relational existence are unreal".One should realize this truth and live free.

   The jiva (living beings) arrive here on earth as a result of 'desire' of Shiva. It is due to the 'Will of the Lord- shivecche or Sri Hari iccha. It is said, "The Lord Willed". The Lord in  in His transcendental meditative state-'yoga nidra,' became aware of His 'sat' (existence), and felt His aloneness (Ekam). He desired, thought, and willed- "I shall be many" (bahusyam); and, lo, there came the world in many a varied manifest forms. Thus, the world is a manifest form of Shiva.

   Each and every jiva is shiva only and nothing but Shive. Here the term shiva stands for the sound of breath- 'sa', 'ha'  and, the action of breathing is 'i'. Sa ha i eva shiva. The Lord seated in all jiva as prana, breathes! It is He who breathes and no body can stop it; and, nobody can ever revive it if it stops! This simple truth evades all jiva and keeps them in eternal ignorance, avidya. Thus, the jiva comes with 'aham' due to avidya.

   Since all these jiva are the self, independent, there is no support (alambana) or dependence. It is self existent. It is divine. It arrives here on earth alone and departs alone, at the will of the Lord, Shiva. It is due to avidya, jnyan covered by attachment (moha) and desire that jiva clings on to others. The tragedy is that "this avidya keeps the jiva in eternal bondage". The illusory world, the Ship sailing in the Ocean of Sansar, subject to storms, is the key. This illusroy ocean and the ship can be crossed by "Trust in the Creator", the purusha who is seated within and breathing emitting the sound of creation 'sa' and dissolution 'ha' is Shiva.'I'. 

   This is how the independent jivatman gets embodied and embedded in the mire of sansar.  Once it realises its foolishness, avidya (knowledge covered by attachment, moha, and desire, the jiva tries to get rid of its entanglements. The freedom comes only with the help of a 'guru' . When the jiva ardently desires for liberation, emanciation, mukti. Lord Shiva / Krishna only comes as a 'guru' and teaches yoga and liberates. Thus a guru and yoga abhyasa are essential for liberation.

  Gurubrahma gururvishnu gurudevo maheshvarah | Guru sakshaat parabrahma tasmai shree gurave namah ||

 This prayer mantra says, "Lord Vishnu, brahma and Maheshvara re the only Guru and "These teachers are nowhere else but within us as the 'One', 'Who' is breathing"! 'Pranayama' leads us to actual darshan of the Lord in 'savikalpa samadhi' and one can merge in Him in nirvikalpa samadhi..   The  funniest part of relationship is that of parents and siblings. In fact, the jiva arrives on its own from a distant star as a photon, light-energy particle and gets embodied in soil to form living beings or organic bodies. The jiva getting embodied in the womb creates a Mother or father, not the vice versa! Just because i am born, my parents can say, they are my parents.If I am not at all born, or get aborted in the middle, the question of parenting does not arise. Another thing is just because a child is born in India somebody in Australa,USA or England becomes a chacha, mama or Grandpa and Grandma? Funny, isn't it? All relations are fictitious. Take for example a child exchanged or sold by a greedy nurse, or in a hospital fire! Who is father and who is mother of whom? Do we go for DNA test for all kids? All religion, caste and creed are nonsensical in this sense. Social scientists say, "Man is born free and he is in chains everywhere".   

Here is a dialogue that makes these points clear:

'Then as the vital breath was about to depart, he uprooted the organs from their places just as a noble horse tears up the pegs.They (all the senses, manas, buddhi, and ahankar) came to him (the Prana) and said: "Revered Sir, be thou our lord; thou art the best among us. Do not depart from us.

 [Sama Veda, Chandogya Upanishad V, I - The Supremacy of the Prana, 1]
Prana is thus dear to all. One can have a more reliable and longlasting relationship with the self. The Bhagavad-Gita says, "Do not neglect the Self."Realization of the Self is the only goal of life. All other worldly mundane relationships are subject to limitations of time, space, causation. Anybody depending on external objects, men or materials are bound to be disappointed, sooner or later.

The Search

  The search for ‘truth’ is an endless one. There is enormous literature both in science and philosophy regarding this. But the spiritual literature is scarce. Whatever little we know from the spiritual texts give us a clear idea about the problems and the answers to them in cryptic aphorisms, code words, signs and symbols, imageries and formulae. Some of these are quite interesting. These are found in the ahirbudhnya samhitas, sattavata samhitas, Lakshmi tantra, Shaivagama shastra and other 250 samhitas of pancharatra agama. Many scholarly works are available in print.

   What these spiritual texts simply state is that “What we seek is our Self only, nothing but the Self”. The search ends with the seeker knowing his true self. Here the seer and the seen become one. What we seek outside is not permanent since all that is found outside of us is subject to limitations of time, space and causality. What we seek is the ‘truth’ the intransient, permanent, that which is eternal. This the ‘sat’, Truth and “That’s it”.

   In the beginning, everything was ‘sat’. The term ‘sat’ means not just the truth, but it also means light, consciousness, energy and everything! Hence, the learned sages simply said everything is sat, the brahmn. sarvam khaluvidam brahmaa | These terms – sat, chit, anand are highly esoteric. A lot can be said about them. In fact, the one ‘sat’ only has manifest as the ‘chit’ (consciousness, knowledge), and ananda (bliss) and the entire universe is thus, the ‘sat’ only. Bhagavan Shree Krishna says, “Om tat sat iti” and concludes that everything is ‘That’, that is it.

  Now, whatever is ‘sat’ (‘That’) is also the manifest phenomenal objective world- ‘this’. This universe is the manifest form of the ‘sat’! Whatever is that eternal, immortal, intransient only has come within limitations of time, space, causality (cause and effect), and name, forms and functions. Duality such as this and that ceases to exist when these limitations are overcome with the help of ‘transcendental meditation, (samadhi yoga). When a person is ignorant of his true self, he /she tends to think- “I am different from that, this, you, he, she it, etc. Knowledge, truth, reality dawns when this ignorance, avidya, knowledge covered by attachment, ego, desire, etc. are removed. This is what Bhagavan Shree Krishna teaches us through Arjuna. The Lord says, “Arjuna, you are full of attachment, ego, desire and have forgotten your true self. Once you realize who you are, ‘realize that you are none other than the unborn, eternal, immortal sat, you become Me only. You and I are always one. But, the moment you get attached to phenomenal objective world and begin to think of i, me, mine, etc you go away from Me. You can always return to Me when you drop what all you have acquired as the blemishes of attachment, ego, desire, anger, envy, etc. This is the ‘Truth’.”  [Bhagavad-Gita]

    The Universe in Different Perspectives: The Universe is like a mosaic seen through a kaleidoscope (triangular glass tube) which displays ever-changing, varying forms of the contents like pieces of colorful glass bangles. So, each one of us get a different perspective of this transient phenomenal world. Little do the living beings (jivarashi) ever realize the ‘truth’, reality of this existence, until they get a divine vision? The living beings revel in ignorance and believe whatever is presented to them or they see as the illusory world. In fact, it is not that the world is unreal, but its transient or ever changing nature that makes it difficult to know. The scientists deal with matter and use their mind, intelligence, and the senses to study matter. They invent new methods and equipments such as the spectrometer, telescopes and microscope to study things that are beyond the capacity of their sense organs. 

Where Am I?

Where Am I? Am I an alien who arrived here on Earth?

    Now this mystery is solved once and for all. “I am the light”! I travelled down to earth as a particle of stellar dust, ‘Energy’ and the “soundarya lahari” eulogises this in the very first verse. Accordingly, the ‘Trinity- hari hara virinchi seated at the feet of “devi trailokya sundari, Adishakti Rajarajeshvari ‘shree vidyaa’ are asking Her permission to take a few stellar dust particles from Her feet. virinchi (Im) asks Her permission to create and hari (ra) wants permission to sustain what is created, and finally maheshvara (ha) wants permission to burn all these to dust and smear it on his body! This Shree and the trinity have been eulogised as the bijakshara maha mantra “shreem”. Thus, every jiva is an embodiment of devi only!

Thus, the nature of the origin of life, the embodiment of the Atman (soul) as the jiva (Jivatman) is very clear. Like a person entering in and out of a car, train or aircraft, the Atma- a photon, a particle of ‘Energy’ has arrived from a distant star on the earth, entered the clouds, raindrop and fell to the earth (soil). It has entered the fruits, vegetables or food grains as ‘annam’ and entered the would-be father’s body. It became his blood, bone marrow, desire, spermatozoa, and entered the would-be mother’s womb! I only passed through all these! Thus, i is I who entered the earth and the parents, may it be, the womb of a pig, horse, dog or a cat, or a man and came out as their kid!   Is there any doubt as to the true nature of the jiva now? 

The Embodied Soul (Jivatman)

   The jiva located on this planet earth is a mysterious one. The earth is supposed to be an ideal place for living beings (jivarashi) to breathe eat and drink and survive and propagate. It is now clear from research findings in the fields of astronomy, physics, chemistry, biology and genetics that a few fundamental particles like hydrogen, carbon, oxygen (HCO) go to make the entire living entity, the living biotic world. Even the universe consisting of the galaxies, stars, planets and their satellites are mainly gaseous elements that later condensed into gross objects. The living beings (jiva-rashi) and all that we find on earth are essentially the made of these subtler energy in the form of light, electricity, magnetism and gravitational force. The humans are endowed with intellect, mind and thought force, intellect and energy. Basically, the fundamental particles are subtler subatomic particles (as in a shooting Star), a meteorite that burnt out as it entered the earth’s atmosphere, that radiate energy and light. This has prompted the scientists to speculate whether the life force (prana) of the jiva has come from the interstellar space!

    The four types of forces that govern the universe are classified as: Gravity, Electromagnetism, Atomic Energy and some Strong and Weak forces. Yet another essential missing force which acts as a catalyst, or that binds all these, is believed to be there, yet to be discovered!

  Ancient scriptures give classification that is not much different from the present-day scientific one. The language may be different but the sum and substance are the same. Briefly, the scientific method is one of experimentation, observation, generalization and universal application. However, the findings are subject to further investigations and change; nothing is certain. They have thus presented hypotheses, postulations, theories of probability, etc. But, this is not the case with the scriptures that are intuitional statements, each one personally experienced by the learned ones through deep contemplation in transcendental meditation. These have been pronounced as final! There is no further question about it. Thus we have the opinions of the Spiritual scientists (vedantin) and the material scientists (padartha vijnyani). The views of the great sages are in aphorisms or cryptic verses, coded language with symbolism, imageries, and esoteric verses, and these need be properly decoded with the help of learned teachers; so also, the mathematical equations, formulae, and the theories of great mathematicians and scientists! Thus, nothing is easy. The common man remains ignorant of all these and somehow ekes out a living. Most of the people do not even bother to know about the spiritual aspects and simply live on.  So, the question of ‘what is it I am doing here’?  The search goes on. 

Arrival of the Jiva on Earth

How the Jiva arrives on Earth!

   The Bhagavad-Gita explains how the jiva arrives on earth. All the living beings survive on food which comes from the soil. Plants depend on Rain for germination of seeds. Rain comes from clouds. Clouds are formed from evaporation of water from oceans due to sun’s heat. Thus, it is the same ‘solar energy’ that lies in the form of water vapor in the clouds that produce rain due to cooling and condensation. This ‘solar energy’ is the ‘life–force’ that we get from the sun as well as the distant stars. Each jiva is an ‘ion’, a subatomic particle, a photon, a stellar dust particle, in this sense of the term.

    This life-force or ‘prana’ is at the root of all jivas (prani). Water, heat, and soil play a very important role in germination of the seed. Vedic Texts say, “purusha’ (brahmn) is the seed. In the Gita, Bhagavan Sri Krishna says, “I am the seed of creation”. Everything is ‘chaitanya’, energy inherent in spirit as we as matter that is unborn, eternal and immortal. Energy cannot be created or destroyed. Energy is derived from sun and distant stars, too, as far as earth and its living beings are concerned. 

The germination of seed and fertilization of eggs are curious aspects of life. Also, there are viruses and germs automatically appearing from nowhere! Shoots cut and transplanted also grow and thus propagation takes place. These are andaja, budbhuda, svedaja and retaja- the four types of propagation. Chaitanya, prana, life-force is the critical factor in creating life. This prana or life-force is coming from oxygen and hydrogen, but who puts it there is the question! Moreover, one seed only becomes a orchard, plantation, or forest. One person only becomes family, society, and nation.

   The life-force or ‘prana’ is at the root of all jivas (prani). Water and soil play a very important role in germination of the seed. Where does the prana lie is still open to question since it is said to be in the space (akasha) with the mind and desire! Mind and mood, desire and attachment are important subtler forces in creation. “No desire, no life”, is the doctrine. This is explained in the ‘madhurashtakam’ (Sweet/attraction/magnetism?) and the doctrine of sacrifice, ‘yajnya’, in the Veda. “Everything is sweet’ (madhuram)* and sacrifice”, says the Veda. The Sun burns itself, sacrifices itself, to produce heat, light, energy and life-force and thereby created all the paraphernalia of life-forms on earth. Each one is a link in the food chain and a sacrifice, at that. Man sacrifices his freedom for a wife and family, the family for the society, the society for the nation, and the nations for the world at large. This goes on and on until everything ends at the wave of the magic wand of the lord. Bhagavan Shree Krishna says, “I am the magician (mayavin) and I project/ create with my magic wand (Sudarshana chakra) and, withdraw/ destroy everything.” He says “I am Time”. Kaalo’smi | Sudarshan Chakra in the hand of Vishnu or the Churning Rod in the hands of Udupi Krishna are the symbolic expression of 'Time'.

  According to the Gita, things should happen by will of God! The Lord says, it is my lila! Learned sages, Jnyanis, say, “Oh Lord, not a blade of grass stirs without your will”; na trunamapi chalati te na vinaa | Only divine will prevails.

*This water is the honey (effect) of all beings, and all beings are the honey (effect) of this water. Likewise, the bright, immortal being who is in this water and the bright, immortal being existing as the semen in the body are both honey. These four are but this Self. The Knowledge of this Self is the means to Immortality; this underlying unity is Brahman; this Knowledge of Brahman is the means of becoming all.

This fire is the honey (effect) of all beings, and all beings are the honey (effect) of this fire. Likewise, the bright, immortal being who is in this fire and the bright, immortal being identified with the organ of speech in the body are both honey. These four are but this Self. The Knowledge of this Self is the means to Immortality; this underlying unity is Brahman; this Knowledge of Brahman is the means of becoming all.

This air is the honey (effect) of all beings, and all beings are the honey (effect) of this air. Likewise, the bright, immortal being who is in this air and the bright, immortal being identified with the vital breath in the body are both honey. These four are but this Self. The Knowledge of this Self is the means to Immortality; this underlying unity is Brahman; this Knowledge of Brahman is the means of becoming all.[Yajur Veda, Brihadaranyaka Upanishad II, V-The Interdependence of Created Objects, 1-3]

Wo Am I?

     ‘Who am I’?

    Before answering this important spiritual question, it is important to note what Bhagavan Sri Krishna says about the three constituents of the human being (jiva). The outer material or earthen shell is the gross (sthula) physical body. It is made up of the five elements- earth/soil and minerals (food), water, fire, air, and space. The second one is the Mind. It is both gross and subtle according to its state of mind and mood (chitta). Mind and mood play a very dominant role in the life of the jiva. The third one is  the subtle one which normally does not play active role unless activated by the manas and the buddhi. This is the soul, Atman, the core of the jiva. The living being, jivatman, is a noble aspect of creation. There is yet another subtler aspect of the jiva; this is a complex system of nerves and neurons that carry all that is subtler and vital to the very survival of the jiva. These are partly visible and partly invisible carrying currents of sensation, life-force, thoughts and feelings, emotions, and, as such, very little understoof by the jiva.The entire body is a network of these nerves and neurons numbering 36 000 on each side of the body totaling 72 000. One central nerve only branches out into hundreds and cover the entire body as shown in the diagrams later. These play a very significant role in the life of the jiva. Of these four constituents of the jiva the physical body depends on food, water and air and, the mind too, is greatly influenced by food, but not the soul.

   As far as the activities of the jiva is concerned, almost all spend their entire life in acquiring some knowledge and skill so as to enable oneself to get sufficient food and live comfortably. There is hardly any time left for any other pursuit, much less to know about the very purpose of such a living! The neglect of the soul has created a mess and little does the jiva knows about this. Only a few sensible persons have ever thought about it and pursued the knowledge of the soul, Atmajnyan. Almost all the people die without knowing this simple truth. The tragedy is that the most successful persons in public life who achieve laurels like Nobel Prize, and national recognition like the Bharat Ratna, die without knowing who the real person, ‘purusha’, he/she is!

  Once a person realizes the ‘truth’, wwho he/she is, the objective phenomenal world falls off like a house of cards! The jiva is liberatd from its repeated cycles of births and deaths, metempsychosis’ the moment it realises who it is! All the attachment to the worldlty objects disappears. This is the end of all desires and attachments. Here is an anecdote from the Jataka Tales. When Gautama became the Buddha, he was brought to his father’s Palace and introduced to his father, wife, and son. But, the Buddha did not recognize anybody! He said, “I have no father, wife, or son”!

   Then, one of them asked Rahul son of Goutama, “Who are you since your father disowns you? He also said, “I don’t know! I have not seen my father ever since he left before I could see and know him, nor do I know anything about my father’s mother! I am told she was already dead by the time my father could see her!” This gives us an idea about how we all are attached to the world due to ignorance of our true nature. The phenomenal objective world is transient and subject to death decay and dissolution. There is nothing permanent about it and we somehow cling onto it!

    The same is the story of many a orphans, forlorn children  abandoned, or sold for a price, or adopted by some foreigners, or for that matter, even those saved from a hospital fire, or accident site. These kids do not know anything about their antecedents.

    And, Lo! There are people who boast of their religions, caste and creed, and belief systems and harm others who do not follow them! All these are eye openers to a person who is enmoured by atachment, greed, ego, and suffers from ignorance.  

    But then, “Who am I?” This question is persistently asked by every jiva when it gets puzzled as to its role in life. It is confused. It is always somebody and not the real self. Hence it seeks an answer. What is the answer? The answer is very simple and direct. When all that are called ‘me and mine’ are discarded what remains is ‘that’ pure self. This pure self is inexplicable. It is pure bliss, total awareness of the true self. This state is found in deep sleep as well as a state of samadhi yoga. It is not an unconscious state; it is total awareness of the self and everything else within its self.

   A living being, jiva, rather, an embodied soul, will ultimately find out who he/she is after a long introspection, quest, taking an inward journey in search of truth! It (the jiva) discovers that it is an embodiment, acquisition of a material gross physical body and it is constantly changing with time; hence it is not the ‘sat’, true self. So also, the fickle mind is always thinking about this and that, called ‘manovikalpa’, or’ chanchala chitta’, together with the perverted intelligence (vipareeta buddhi), is not the true self. The ‘ego’ (ahankar) that rules the jiva, too, is not the self. All these- manas, buddhi and ahankar, are at rest when the jiva when the jiva goes to deep sleep. So, the jiva finds that all these appendage- physical, mental or psychosomatic entity that is of no avail to find out the true ‘Self’, that is covered by avidya.

     Finally, a Guru (Yogacharya Shree Krishna) comes, as if by divine providence, to help the confused jiva (Arjuna) to redeem it from all this mire of mental or physical, earthly existence. However, it is not that easy; this needs a bit of carryover of the fruits of action (karma phala) carried over from the past (purvarjita), God’s grace (anugraha), and the blessings (ashirvada) of the departed souls, teachers, and elders.

     The jiva has to prepare for this long journey taking recourse to yoga through spiritual practices (adhyatma sadhana), satsang, and study of scriptures. Finally, the jiva comes to know that it is not ‘this’ and this’. It finds out that the true nature of the jiva is nothing but the ‘truth, consciousness and bliss (sat-chit-ananda) and, it is finally redeemed. This may happen instantly or may take several lives! This is a big question mark? It is all a question of discarding what all is acquired from birth, rather than adding accumulating wealth and appendages, prefixes, affixes, and afflictions to the name, form, and function or revelling in the mire of earthly existence, enjoying a sensuous life that is transient.

"Divine Will"

   The memory chip inscribed within the DNA and RNA and inserted in the jiva runs its course and the personality blooms as and when it should! There is nothing one can do on the face of it. Once the jiva has entered the earth as a particle of stellar dust, a photon, radiating from a distant star, it takes up all that is earthly (pancha mahabhutatmika), or elemental; it depends on food from soil and thereby acquires all the qualities of the earth. The form assumed by the jiva is immaterial.

  Now, the jiva runs its errands as per the divine will. Everything happens as ordained by fate, destiny. But there is what is given to jiva as "free will". This free will- sva icCha or svecChe and action, karma, accomplished with desire decides its fate. Whatever the jiva does in svecCha does not come under Lord's will since it is subject to individual's whim and fancy; however, a small antar-dhvani, inner voice of consciousness warns the jiva, if it cares to hear!  This is where karma bandhana starts (as seed for rebirths). Some people are cautious in exercising this free will and thereby escape the clutches of maya.

  When things happen on their own, the 'divine will' is operating taking the jiva on its right path (satnyasa) to the logical end- mukti. The jiva gets knowledge (para vidya), knowledge of scriptures by grace of Lord, intuitional knowledge and ability to decode the scriptures, practice yoga and even get a 'guru' to take him on the pre-ordained sanyasa!

  The natural state of the jiva is sat chit and ananda. The ‘sat’ only vibrates as ‘chit’ (consciousness) and becomes a vibrant mind, chitta, mind full of thoughts, ideas, images, dreams and aspirations, (chittavrutti); it is the Energy, Chaitanya, chetasa, chaitya and chetana and the Life-force (prana-shakti) of the jiva. The jiva vibrates with prana and gets embodies a prani like the animation of a toy. Purandhara Dasa said it in a beautiful song that the world is a play of toys; we are all toys tied with invisible threads (sutrada bombe, Kan.) in His hand.

    Thus, the mula- svarupa, true nature of the jiva, is saccidananda. The grip of prakruti, maya, over the jiva is such that the jiva forgets its true nature and suffers dualities. “This is that eternal Ashvattha Tree with its root above and branches below. That root, indeed, is called the Bright; That is Brahman and That alone is the Immortal. In That all worlds are contained and none can pass beyond. This, verily, is That.” [Yajur Veda, Katha Upa. Part Two, Ch. III, 1].

   Whatever there is- the whole universe, vibrates because it has gone forth from Brahman, which exists as its Ground. That Brahman is a great terror, like a poised thunderbolt. Those who know It become immortal. From terror of Brahman, fire burns; from terror of It, the sun shines; from terror of It, Indra and Vayu and Death, the fifth, run. If a man is able to realise Brahman here, before the falling asunder of his body, then he is liberated; if not, he is embodied again in the created worlds. As in a mirror, so in the buddhi; as in a dream, so in the World of the Fathers; as in water, so Brahman is seen in the World of the Gandharvas; as in light and shade, so in the World of Brahma. [Yajur Veda, Katha Upa., Part Two, Ch. III, 1- 5]

   “He, the One and Undifferentiated, who by the manifold application of His powers produces, in the beginning, different objects for a hidden purpose and, in the end, withdraws the universe into Himself, is indeed the self-luminous- May He endow us with clear intellect! That Supreme Self is Agni (Fire); It is Aditya (Sun); It is Vayu (Wind); It is Chandrama (Moon). That Self is the luminous stars; It is Hiranyagarbha; It is water; It is Virat.”

 “Thou art woman, Thou art man; Thou art youth and maiden too. Thou as an old man totters along on a staff; it is Thou alone who, when born, assumes diverse forms. Thou art the dark-blue bee; Thou art the green parrot with red eyes; Thou art the thunder-cloud, the seasons and the seas. Thou art the beginning-less and all-pervading. From Thee all the worlds are born.”  [Yajurveda, Sveta. Upa. Part I, Chapter IV, 1-4]

  “I know this un-decaying, primeval One, the Self of all things, which exists everywhere, being all-pervading and which the wise declare to be free from birth. The teachers of Brahman, indeed, speak of ‘It’ as eternal.” [Yajurveda, Sveta. Upa., Part I, Chapter III, 21].

The wise man, having realised Atman as dwelling within impermanent bodies but Itself bodiless, vast and all-pervading, does not grieve. This Atman cannot be attained by the study of the Vedas, or by intelligence, or by much hearing of sacred books. It is attained by him alone whom It chooses. To such a one Atman reveals Its own form. He who has not first turn away from wickedness, who is not tranquil and subdued and whose mind is not at peace, cannot attain Atman. It is realised only through the Knowledge of Reality. Who, then, knows where He is, He to whom, Brahmins and Kshatriyas are mere food, and death itself a condiment? [Yajur Veda, Katha Upanishad, Part One, Chapter II, 22-25].

   Two there are who dwell within the body, in the intellect, the supreme akasa of the heart, enjoying the sure rewards of their own actions. The knowers of Brahman describe them as light and shade, as do those householders who have offered oblations in the Five Fires and also those who have thrice performed the Nachiketa sacrifice. [Yajur Veda, Katha Upa., Part One, Ch. III, 1]

Let us understand some basic concepts first.All jivas do not have the same capacity to understand what comes to their grasp. Some are intelligent and can clearly understand what is imparted. But, it is not so in the case of spiritual scriptures, and knowledge concerning the Atman. It requires different background and preparation under expert guidance, particularly in yoga.

'Will of God"

What we mostly see around us as spiritual seekers or teachers of yoga are not what they should be, with exception, of course. Self-Realization (Atma sakshatkara) is not easy. Those who have attained to this highest state of spiritual state, pure consciousness, do not have any interest in worldly affairs for they have crossed the Mental-mental state of evolution and have stepped into Spiritual realm (See Aurobindo) after discarding conscious awareness of their mundane existence, albeit, they spend time here till they cast off their physical body. They live a life of absolute bliss unaware of the happenings to other earthlings. This should not be construed as a selfish way of life since these blessed souls have been emancipated, redeemed, or liberated! They rejoice in Brahmn consciousness.

   Sri Krishnananda, Shivananda Ashrama, Hrishikesh, says: “Nothing that comes from outside is of any help in attaining to the knowledge of the Self.’ In fact, thousands of teachers and preachers go on talking and talking without any substance. Many do not know what they are talking about. This can be verified from their life style. If some boast of 50,000 followers, some boast of 400 ashrams all over the world; some say, they have never read a scripture in their life but still talk like “devil quoting the scriptures’. The truth is very simple: “If i suffer from stomach pain, i only should take the medicine”. Unless i learn to sit in a place for just two minutes a day nothing is possible. The first step is taken when you take a crash course in Transcendental meditation and ashtanga yoga. It must be remembered, the first four steps of Patanjali yoga sutra such as yama, niyama, pratyahara and Ishvara pranidana can never be followed in this life.

   It seems impossible to attain to Samadhi remaining in worldly life, hearing lectures on philosophy, religion and spiritualty. This is the reason why some serious seekers leave everything and rush to Himalayas and undergo tremendous hardships. We want bed-tea and timely breakfast, lunch and dinner and friends to chat, and at the same time aspire for enlightenment! Lo! There are gurujis and swamijis who advice to stay in family, develop anasakti yoga, get vairagya. The result is riding two horses (suti and asuti) at the same time. Contemplation, dharana and Samadhi are very important for attainment of atma jnyan and emancipation. This needs solitude.

An attempt is made here to present altogether a different version of our understanding of the universe, and our place in an ever-changing universescape in the light of recent findings in physical and biological sciences, as well as, the ancient scriptures. In fact, even the existing scientific theories are subject to change, but not the findings in Vedanta. What is so special about it? It is intuitional knowledge (shuddha vidhya) derived from a transcendental state, meditative or contemplative mode is samadhi, that needs no proof (pramANa).

Some people believe in things happening, luck or fate, divine will ruling the jiva’s life and work while others assert that they are their own masters! According to the Gita, things should happen by will of God! The Lord says, it is my lila! Jnyanis say,

“Oh Lord, not a blade of grass stirs without your will”; na trunamapi chalati te na vinaa |

Manifestation

The supreme Lord manifests in numerous forms. In the Bhagavad-Gita, He asserts that, “maya is created in my seeing. People are mesmerised by this maya. ‘My’ maya is so sweet, a person cannot understand how very sweet is this ‘I’ is. Oh Arjuna, do not forget me; is you do not forget me, maya will not be able to do anything to you.” Further, He, the Lord goes on to say, “See the characteristics of maya! She created a huge lake and birds and insects! Observing this, it all appears to be true, but it is nothing. There is no escape from the hands of maya. Yet God saves one who takes refuge in Him. That person alone whom God bestows his grace can escape the hands of maya.”  This ‘i’ is the maya. The jiva goes on saying ‘i did this’, ‘i did that’, and ‘i am so and so’, etc. It disappears as soon gets into deep sleep (sushupti) every night or day. The moment one gets out of sleep, this ‘i’ appears! None has understood where this exists and when it makes its appearance. All the problems of the jiva are created by this ‘i’- the ego (ahankara). The moment this ‘i’ disappears (as saint Kanakadasa said), the jiva is liberated from the clutches of maya, that binds the jiva due to ignorance. Thus, ‘i am’, ‘i is’, i only, is the maya. This i merges in Brahman every night when we are deep sleep and the jiva enjoys a blissful existence unaware of the world! This i only will come out ignorance refreshed after a night-long sleep.  “This gross body of liberated souls will decompose; yet, even if the body goes, their powers remain; it does not go.” The vasanas, karma kleshas form the seedlings for next birth. People unmindful of this go on quarrelling themselves. They create divisions. So long as there is divisive thinking, divisive actions, so long will people create sects. If the divisive attitude departs, the upadhi, false identification, is destroyed. At the destruction of the upadhi, one becomes aware of one’s divine consciousness. The realization comes when one realizes that “One Brahman has manifest as many. When one becomes pure, one will have the understanding that: I am verily Vishnu. I am a child of Vishnu.”

    Our existence on this planet is almost a miracle. Mysteries surround our birth and death. So far, no plausible explanation is forthcoming for our existence. It seems ‘no purpose is served merely eating and sleeping, whiling away time in seeking joy in extraneous things’. Moreover, all our thoughts and actions, behaviour, problems of hunger, disease, old age and death are not in our hands. Life is full of and probabilities. Nothing is certain here. What we see and believe may not be true at all! Things have to be seen in the background of an unstable earth, a vast expansive universe that is ever on the move, a universe of no known magnitude or dimension, and of illusory nature bound by Time and Space. In fact, this Time that creates Space by its movement is by itself an illusion! If Time is illusion, the space created by it as well as the objects that fill it and endure are also illusion. Illusion of illusion is delusion. Thus, there is no end to this delusion, ignorance. We, as the humans, should realize the fact that we are nothing but specks of dust, star-dust at that. These jivas or vibrant life-forms are like sparks of fire flying out of flames. Once we realize ‘who we are’, where do we come from, and where do we go from here when we die, or how we give up one mortal body and take another soon after, the ‘Reality’ dawns on us. We are truly the spiritual entity- the atman, embodied in an earthen shell like a pot made of clay susceptible to leakage and breakage. Symbolically, a pot filled with water is broken at the time of cremation of the dead bodies. This signifies the fact that the inside and the outside separated by an earthen shell is no more, and everything is one! 

    However, the purpose of our existence is yet to be defined. The ancient scriptures are our best guides. But, we neither have the complete texts of these, nor do we ever understand their coded language. The story of the arrival and departure of a jivatman on this planet is narrated here. It is an autobiography of the soul. Thus, the soul only speaks here. It is an intuitional knowledge obtained from parame vyoman in yogic trance.

     This spiritual study, like any other discipline calls for determination, steadfastness, keen interest, focused attention, concerted effort, and serious practice of yoga, and devotion to Guru. There should be a sense of purpose in life in order to attain to the highest level of existence and enjoy supreme bliss that is possible for any human being. Spiritual journey is more arduous than the journey in the material and sensuous world. Material world is also hazardous full of uncertainties, failures, disappointments, disillusionment, and frustrations. It is endless, with countless wants, insatiability, cravings for more and more, and finally, ordained to repeated births and deaths. The spiritual path is no less unpredictable and hazardous- full of unknown twists and turns and glaring mysteries, secrets, and coded secret words (mantra) that may often lead to doubts and disbeliefs, and sudden loss of faith and interest.

   Another hazard of this spiritual journey is that the sadhaka moves slowly away from the lower, ’here’, the concrete, the sensible, logic and sensuous gibbering towards the higher, ‘there’, abstract, nonsense, rather senseless(?), and silence. Worldly people are prone to treat this as madness. Most of the teachings of Great Masters are based on these principles and still people run to them! It seems paradoxical that people want solace in times of their distress and look to these renunciates, but do not want to follow their teachings in their daily life! For instance, if one tries to become a Raghavaendra Tirtha, one should follow in his footsteps and take to sanyas at the early age. If one follows his footsteps, the first casualty would be his wife and the next, his mother. As we know, Raghavaendra Swamy’s wife Saraswati Bai committed suicide and mother died in distress. In fact, most of the mystics have undergone untold misery and sufferings in their life before looking to higher spiritual power for solace.  

  The teachings of Acharyas like Shankaracharya, Madhava (Vidyaranya), or Badarayana can never be understood unless one experiences the times and way of life they lived. Shankara experienced untold misery and things have changed over time. It seems thus impossible for a common man to come to spiritual field, adhyatma, giving up the hearth and home, sensuous worldly life. Nobody wants to leave the cosy life of comforts and take to a life of a recluse and do severe askesis (tapas). Hathayoga is out of question. Even those who have tried and succeeded to some extent have suddenly fallen from grace!