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.
