Sathya Sai Vahini - Post 43

The earlier post in which Swami has explained the “Real I”, is so complete in itself that there are no expressions further to explain anything.

 

Still, when the content is on “I”, let us go through the following relevant extract on “I” from the writing of Sri Ramana Maharishi on “who am I”

“As all living beings desire to be happy always, without misery, as in the case of everyone there is observed supreme love for one’s self, and as happiness alone is the cause for love, in order to gain that happiness which is one’s nature and which is experienced in the state of deep sleep where there is no mind, one should know one’s self. For that, the path of knowledge, the inquiry of the form “Who am I?”, is the principal means.

 

1. Who am I ?

 

The gross body which is composed of the seven humours (dhatus), I am not; the five cognitive sense organs, viz. the senses of hearing, touch, sight, taste, and smell, which apprehend their respective objects, viz. sound, touch, color, taste, and odour, I am not; the five cognitive sense organs, viz. the organs of speech, locomotion, grasping, excretion, and procreation, which have as their respective functions speaking, moving, grasping, excreting, and enjoying, I am not; the five vital airs, prana, etc., which perform respectively the five functions of in-breathing, etc., I am not;

 

even the mind which thinks, I am not; the nescience too, which is endowed only with the residual impressions of objects, and in which there are no objects and no functioning’s, I am not.

 

2. If I am none of these, then who am I?

 

After negating all of the above-mentioned as ‘not this’, ‘not this’, that Awareness which alone remains - that I am.

 

3. What is the nature of Awareness?

The nature of Awareness is existence-consciousness-bliss

 

4. When will the realization of the Self be gained?

 

When the world which is what-is-seen has been removed, there will be realization of the Self which is the seer.

 

5. Will there not be realization of the Self even while the world is there (taken as real)?

 

There will not be.

 

6. Why?

The seer and the object seen are like the rope and the snake. Just as the knowledge of the rope which is the substrate will not arise unless the false knowledge of the illusory serpent goes, so the realization of the Self which is the substrate will not be gained unless the belief that the world is real is removed.

 

7. When will the world which is the object seen be removed?

When the mind, which is the cause of all cognition’s and of all actions, becomes quiescent, the world will disappear.

 

8. What is the nature of the mind?

 

What is called ‘mind’ is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all thoughts to arise.

 

Apart from thoughts, there is no such thing as mind. Therefore, thought is the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts, there is no independent entity called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no world. In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a world also. 

 

Just as the spider emits the thread (of the web) out of itself and again withdraws it into itself, likewise the mind projects the world out of itself and again resolves it into itself. When the mind comes out of the Self, the world appears. Therefore, when the world appears (to be real), the Self does not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear. When one persistently inquires into the nature of the mind, the mind will end leaving the Self (as the residue).

 

What is referred to as the Self is the Atman. The mind always exists only in dependence on something gross; it cannot stay alone. It is the mind that is called the subtle body or the soul (jiva).

 

9. What is the path of inquiry for understanding the nature of the mind?

 

That which rises as ‘I’ in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in the body the thought ‘I’ rises first, one would discover that it rises in the heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin.

 

Even if one thinks constantly ‘I’ ‘I’, one will be led to that place. Of all the thoughts that arise in the mind, the ‘I’ thought is the first. It is only after the rise of this that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of the first personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear; without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.

 

10. How will the mind become quiescent?

 

By the inquiry ‘Who am I?’. The thought ‘who am I?’ will destroy all other thoughts, and like the stick used for stirring the burning pyre, it will itself in the end get destroyed. Then, there will arise Self-realization.

 

11. What is the means for constantly holding on to the thought ‘Who am I?’

 

When other thoughts arise, one should not pursue them, but should inquire: ‘To whom do they arise?’ It does not matter how many thoughts arise. As each thought arises, one should inquire with diligence, “To whom has this thought arisen?”. The answer that would emerge would be “To me”. Thereupon if one inquires “Who am I?”, the mind will go back to its source; and the thought that arose will become quiescent. With repeated practice in this manner, the mind will develop the skill to stay in its source. 

 

When the mind that is subtle goes out through the brain and the sense organs, the gross names and forms appear; when it stays in the heart, the names and forms disappear.

 

Not letting the mind go out, but retaining it in the Heart is what is called “inwardness” (antarmukha). Letting the mind go out of the Heart is known as “externalisation” (bahir-mukha). 

 

Thus, when the mind stays in the Heart, the ‘I’ which is the source of all thoughts will go, and the Self which ever exists will shine. Whatever one does, one should do without the egoity “I”. If one acts in that way, all will appear as of the nature of Siva (God).

 

12. Are there no other means for making the mind quiescent?

Other than inquiry, there are no adequate means. If through other means it is sought to control the mind, the mind will appear to be controlled, but will again go forth. Through the control of breath also, the mind will become quiescent; but it will be quiescent only so long as the breath remains controlled, and when the breath resumes the mind also will again start moving and will wander as impelled by residual impressions. The source is the same for both mind and breath. 

 

Thought, indeed, is the nature of the mind. The thought “I” is the first thought of the mind; and that is egoity. It is from that whence egoity originates that breath also originates. Therefore, when the mind becomes quiescent, the breath is controlled, and when the breath is controlled the mind becomes quiescent. 

But in deep sleep, although the mind becomes quiescent, the breath does not stop. This is because of the will of God, so that the body may be preserved and other people may not be under the impression that it is dead. In the state of waking and in samadhi, when the mind becomes quiescent the breath is controlled.

 

Breath is the gross form of mind. Till the time of death, the mind keeps breath in the body; and when the body dies the mind takes the breath along with it. Therefore, the exercise of breath-control is only an aid for rendering the mind quiescent (manonigraha); it will not destroy the mind (manonasa).

 

Like the practice of breath-control. meditation on the forms of God, repetition of mantras, restriction on food, etc., are but aids for rendering the mind quiescent.

 

Through meditation on the forms of God and through repetition of mantras, the mind becomes onepointed. The mind will always be wandering. Just as when a chain is given to an elephant to hold in its trunk it will go along grasping the chain and nothing else, so also when the mind is occupied with a name or form it will grasp that alone. 

 

When the mind expands in the form of countless thoughts, each thought becomes weak; but as thoughts get resolved the mind becomes one-pointed and strong; for such a mind Self-inquiry will become easy. Of all the restrictive rules, that relating to the taking of sattvic food in moderate quantities is the best; by observing this rule, the sattvic quality of mind will increase, and that will be helpful to Self-inquiry.

 

13. The residual impressions (thoughts) of objects appear wending like the waves of an ocean.

When will all of them get destroyed?

 

As the meditation on the Self rises higher and higher, the thoughts will get destroyed.

 

14. Is it possible for the residual impressions of objects that come from beginningless time, as it were, to be resolved, and for one to remain as the pure Self?

 

Without yielding to the doubt “Is it possible, or not?”, one should persistently hold on to the meditation on the Self. Even if one be a great sinner, one should not worry and weep “O! I am a sinner, how can I be saved?”; one should completely renounce the thought “I am a sinner”; and concentrate keenly on meditation on the Self; then, one would surely succeed. 

 

There are not two minds - one good and the other evil; the mind is only one. It is the residual impressions that are of two kinds - auspicious and inauspicious. When the mind is under the influence of auspicious impressions it is called good; and when it is under the influence of inauspicious impressions it is regarded as evil.

The mind should not be allowed to wander towards worldly objects and what concerns other people. However bad other people may be, one should bear no hatred for them. Both desire and hatred should be eschewed. All that one gives to others one gives to one’s self. If this truth is understood who will not give to others? When one’s self arises all arises; when one’s self becomes quiescent all becomes quiescent. To the extent we behave with humility, to that extent there will result good. If the mind is rendered quiescent, one may live anywhere.

 

15. How long should inquiry be practised?

As long as there are impressions of objects in the mind, so long the inquiry “Who am I?” is required. As thoughts arise they should be destroyed then and there in the very place of their origin, through inquiry. If one resorts to contemplation of the Self unintermittently, until the Self is

gained, that alone would do. As long as there are enemies within the fortress, they will continue to sally forth; if they are destroyed as they emerge, the fortress will fall into our hands.

16. What is the nature of the Self?

 

What exists in truth is the Self alone. The world, the individual soul, and God are appearances in it. like silver in mother-of-pearl, these three appear at the same time, and disappear at the same time. The Self is that where there is absolutely no “I” thought. That is called “Silence”. The Self itself is the world; the Self itself is “I”; the Self itself is God; all is Siva, the Self.

 

17. Is not everything the work of God?

 

Without desire, resolve, or effort, the sun rises; and in its mere presence, the sun-stone emits fire, the lotus blooms, water evaporates; people perform their various functions and then rest. Just as in the presence of the magnet the needle moves, it is by virtue of the mere presence of God that the souls governed by the three (cosmic) functions or the fivefold divine activity perform their actions and then rest, in accordance with their respective karmas. God has no resolve; no karma attaches itself to Him. That is like worldly actions not affecting the sun, or like the merits and demerits of the other four elements not affecting all pervading space.

18. Of the devotees, who is the greatest?

 

He who gives himself up to the Self that is God is the most excellent devotee. Giving one’s self up to God means remaining constantly in the Self without giving room for the rise of any thoughts other than that of the Self. Whatever burdens are thrown on God, He bears them. Since the supreme power of God makes all things move, why should we, without submitting ourselves to it, constantly worry ourselves with thoughts as to what should be done and how, and what should not be done and how not? We know that the train carries all loads, so after getting on it why should we carry our small luggage on our head to our discomfort, instead of putting it down in the train and feeling at ease?”

 

Love.

 

Sri Ramana Maharshi

 

Sathya Sai Vahini - Post 42

Dear readers,

 

From now onwards, the main and important extract from each chapter, starting from 14th chapter in this post, shall first be posted and then in the next couple of  posts, we will try and go deeper into the essence of the main extract.

Entire chapter by chapter may not be taken up as it is.

 

Universal “I”

"Every living being refers to itself as “I”, “I am Rama”, “I am Krishna”, “I am Sita”, “I am Radha”. Each assumes the “I” as their own and uses it whenever they have to designate themself. 

When we spend some time thinking this over, it will be clear that some great mystery is embedded in the expression “I”. 

But who probes into this mystery? And among those who have dared to probe, how many have succeeded in unraveling it ? Even if a few have unraveled the mystery, how many among them have used the discovery to transform their lives? 

In the Gita, in the following and similar declarations, Sri Krishna refers to “I”, doesn’t He?

So this expression “I” is clearly omnipresent; it is the sign and symbol of all individual souls (jivatmas); it has unlimited forms and appearances. Like the string that passes through the rosary beads, it interpenetrates and holds together all names and forms.

 

The body is only the container, the sheath. Nevertheless, imposing differences and distinctions based on physical characteristics and material considerations, some are elevated as “touchable” and some condemned as “untouchable”; some are classified as “high” and others as “low”. 

 

Really, when you dive into its significance, the word “I” leads you to the supreme Godhead. “That is you”, “That is I”, “I and that are One”, this what the great Vedic dictum “That thou art (Thath thwam asi)” declares. This is the very core of all teaching, the grandest of counsels.

 

This sacred principle embodied in the “I” is beyond the grasp of the most learned scholars by means of lone inquiry, without guides and helpers. However, the guides have to be aware of the truth and be earnest in living the truth. It is beyond the reach of scholarship, logic, and grammar. Note that these are warnings administered by the Vedas and law codes (sruthis and smrithis).

Well. Whoever intends to learn in a general way about this “I” and its implications can be told the secret in just three sentences:

I am active in the daytime, when I am awake. I sleep at night, and experience dreams. Thus, acting and experiencing both day and night, I die.

 

Koham: Who am I?

 

When one considers these statements of the individual, one can conclude that they are based on the individual’s knowledge gained from this life. “The I begins, when I am born”, one believes. But, did this “I” exist before birth? If it did, how can an existing thing be said to be born? Even if this objection is ignored, how did it exist, and where? Was it disembodied apart from name and form? Was it beyond the pale of the senses? Doubts such as these pursue the seeker in waves. It has to be understood clearly that the “I” is not related or affixed to one object, thing, or being, to one name and form. 

Remember this: when you identify and recognize the “I” or arrive at the true answer to the question “Who am I?”, you have identified and recognized the entire cosmos and its mysteries.

It may be asked, what exactly the urgency is to understand the meaning of this “I”, when there is an infinite number of topics in the universe that call for study. One can well try to unravel the secrets of the cosmos. Or, attention may be paid to understand what is meant by the “individual soul (jivi)” or by “God (Deva)”. When such profound subjects as the universe, the individualized Divine, the Divine Itself — subjects that are incomparably important — are clamouring for attention, why give them up and investigate the meaning of expression used by common folk and children, this “I”? Of what benefit it can be, people may ask.

The expression is simple, of course, but its implications are infinite and fundamentally satisfying. This is why all great teachers exhort the seekers to “Know Thyself”, “Inquire into yourself, since that alone can give you release”. The scriptures also confirm this exhortation.

The scriptures extol the importance and value of this inquiry and make it clear that inquiry into the Atma is essential. The assurance is given that the Atma is you, yourself, as in the sacred axiom “That thou art (Thathwam asi)”.

 

Therefore, to fulfil the yearning, you first have to inquire into this mystery of who you are. You can then realize that you are eternal (nithya), beyond the boundaries of time. The scriptures will help you cast away the ignorance (a-jnana), the dark clouds of ignorance that now hide this truth from your awareness. Then, you can delight at the experience of the awareness of your genuine nature. 

  

Mere worldly scholarship cannot delve into the meaning of the Vedas. The grace of God has to be won by devotion and dedication, and that grace alone, the compassionate glance of the eye of God alone, can instil in one the real meaning of the Vedas. 

Only people who are embodiments of divine wisdom and compassion can decide what exactly is helpful to the spiritual progress and well-being of humanity. Others only flounder and find it impossible to cope with the task.

 

Unity of individual Self with Supreme Self

 

Many preceptors and teachers declare that the path of inquiry into oneself is the path of liberation. “Self-inquiry leads to liberation (Swavimarso mokshah)” is the assurance. “That is the Atma; that is myself.” “I and the Atma are not different.” “The Atma and the Paramatma are not separate.”

 

The yarn “I” is both warp and woof of the cloth, the Atma. When the “I” yarn is found in different bodies and feels that in each body it is distinct from the rest, the Atma cloth can be said to disappear; but in both yarn and cloth, one substance persists forever, in spite of how each feels: that substance is “cotton”. So too, the supreme Self (Paramatma) persists as the only truth in the “I”, the Atma. Without the cotton, the supreme Self, there can be no “I” yarn; without the “I” yarn, there can be no Atma cloth. Those three — Paramatma, Atma, and I — are only names and forms for the ONE —the Paramatma, the ONE Atma, the DIVINE Atma, the Supreme Self.

 

Love.

 

 

 

 

 

Sathya Sai Vahini - Post 41

God is the true Guru

 

Similarly, the famous sage Yajnavalkya, after deciding that he would join the monastic order, called his two wives (Katyayani and Maitreyi) and told them that he had partitioned his movable and immovable properties equally, for both of them. 

 

On hearing this, the elder wife, Maitreyi, who was endowed with a high level of intelligence and insight, protested and said, with a smile on her face, “Lord! Can these riches you are handing over to me save me from death and render me immortal? If you assure me that they will do so, certainly I shall accept them, with due reverence to you.”

 

Yajnavalkya explained. “Riches make life pleasant and delightful by the chances they give you to live happily. Do you say that you do not need such valuable riches?”

 

But Maitreyi persisted. “If what you say is true, you could have continued enjoying these riches and deriving happiness therefrom. Why have you decided to give them up and become a monk? No. It is not proper to cheat us weak-minded women, holding these delusive trinkets before us. 

 

How can the riches that you refuse to keep give us peace and happiness? They are temporary objects; they are liable to destruction; they entangle us still further in bondage; they foster the ignorance that we yearn to discard; they are the chief promoters of anxiety and worry. They are basically polluted, since they are not within the realm of the Atma.”

 

When Maitreyi placed before him this truth, Yajnavalkya was silenced, and, not knowing how to proceed, he stood with his head bent before her. Then, Maitreyi fell at the feet of her husband and said, “Lord! You are master of all mysteries. You must have called us and placed before us this proposal in order to test our intelligence. I have no desire for luxury or even comfort. I do not crave riches and possessions. Instruct me about the path that can confer eternal bliss.”

 

In fact, there is only ONE: the highest Brahman. The scriptures on non-duality proclaim that “Brahman alone is true; creation is a myth. The individual (jivi) is Brahman itself (Brahma sathyam, jagath Mithya; Jeevo Brahmaiva naaparam).” 

 

All that happens in the world is as unreal as the dream experience. Dreams disappear and appear again. The pleasures and joys experienced in life are like mirages appearing on the desert sands of hatred, envy, and selfish greed. 

 

Now, how can those people who believe that this mirage is real and run toward it become gurus? Will it be proper to address them as the wise (jnanis)? They are installed on high seats of illusory authority. They teach what they do not practise. 

 

They hold forth ideals that they themselves ignore. How can such people be examples to seekers who need spiritual progress? They are not genuine, for they have not even an iota of the guru principle in them.

 

The Lord alone (Sarveswara) is the genuine Guru. For all seekers, this is the path; let them hold fast to this faith.

 

Essence 

 

The dialogue between Maitryi and Yagnavalkya appears in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad . This brings about the core essence of Vedanta, the core essence of the “ONE” essence of “Brahman”. 

 

Yajnavalkya’s teaching to Maitreyi, knowing her sincere urge to know the TRUTH.

 

Yagnavalkya says,

 

 "My dear, you have been my beloved even before and now you have resolved to know what is after  my heart. If you wish, my dear, I shall explain it to you. As I explain it, meditate on what I say." 

 

Everything is the Self, O Maitreyi !

 

Yajnavalkya said:

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the husband, my dear,  is the husband loved, but he is loved for the sake of the self  which, in its true nature, is one with the Supreme Self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the wife, my dear, is the wife loved, but she is loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the sons, my dear, are the sons loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of wealth, my dear, is wealth loved, but it is loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the animals, my dear, are the animals loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the brahmin, my dear, is the brahmin loved, but he is loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the kshatriya, my dear, is the kshatriya loved, but he is loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the worlds, my dear, are the worlds loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the gods, my dear, are the gods loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the Vedas, my dear, are the Vedas loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the beings, my dear, are the beings loved, but they are loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, not for the sake of the All, my dear, is the All loved, but it is loved for the sake of the self. 

 

"Verily, my dear Maitreyi, it is the Self that should be realized—should be heard of, reflected on and meditated upon.  By the realisation of the Self, my dear, through hearing, reflection and meditation, all this is known. 

 

"The brahmin rejects one who knows him as different from the Self.

 

The kshatriya rejects one who knows him as different from the Self.

 

The worlds reject one who knows them as different from the Self.

 

The gods reject one who knows them as different from the Self.

 

The Vedas reject one who knows them as different from the Self.

 

The beings reject one who knows them as different from the Self.

 

The All rejects one who knows it as different from the Self.

 

This brahmin, this kshatriya, these worlds, these gods, these Vedas, these beings and this All—are  that Self.  

 

"As the various particular kinds of notes of a drum, when it is beaten, cannot be grasped by themselves, but are grasped only when the general note of the drum or the general sound produced by different kinds of strokes is grasped; 

 

"And as the various particular notes of a conch, when it is blown, cannot be grasped by themselves, but are grasped only when the general note of the conch or the general sound produced by different kinds of blowing is grasped; 

 

"And as the various particular notes of a vina, when it is  played, cannot be grasped by themselves, but are grasped only  when the general note of the vina or the general sound  produced by the different kinds of playing is grasped;  

 

 

Then Maitreyi said: "Just here you have completely bewildered me, venerable Sir. Indeed, I do not at all understand this."  He replied:

 

"Certainly I am not saying anything bewildering, my dear. Verily, this Self is immutable and indestructible. 

 

Through what should one know the knower?

 

"For when there is duality, as it were, then one sees another,  one smells another, one tastes another, one speaks to another,  one hears another, one thinks of another, one touches another,  one knows another. 

 

But when to the knower of Brahman everything has become the Self, then what should he see and through what, what should he smell and through what, what  should he taste and through what, what should he speak and  through what, what should he hear and through what, what  should he think and through what, what should he touch and  through what, what should he know and through what?  Through what should one know That Owing to which all this is known? 

 

"This Self is That which has been described as ‘Not this, not this.’ It is imperceptible, for It is never perceived; un-decaying,  for It never decays; unattached, for It never attaches Itself;  unfettered, for It never feels pain and never suffers injury. 

 

Through what, O Maitreyi, should one know the Knower?  "Thus you have the instruction given to you. This much, indeed, is the means to Immortality." 

 

Yagnavalkya thus teaches Maitreyi that “it is the ātman that is to be beheld; it is the ātman that is to be known; it is the ātman that is to be searched for; it is the ātman which is to be heard about; it is the ātman which is to be thought in the mind; it is the ātman which is to be meditated upon. There is nothing else worthwhile thinking, nothing else worthwhile possessing, because nothing worthwhile exists, other than This."

 

Love.