Upadesa Saram - Post 26

                             Verse 23                                 

सत्त्वभासिका चित्क्ववेतरा |

सत्तया हि चिच्चित्तया ह्यहम् || २३ ||

sattvabhāsikā citkvavetarā |

sattayā hi ciccittayā hyaham || 23 ||

The illuminator of Existence is Consciousness. Where is there another?

As Existence is, indeed, Consciousness, as Consciousness, indeed, is “I”.

We see the same rhetoric of Ramana Maharshi coming up again as He asks this kind of question for the third time in the text, begging the answer “NO”.

In Verse 20, the “Parama Poorna Sat” or Infinite Existence is said to be self-revealed when the ego is destroyed. In Verse 21 the sense of ‘I’-ness when freed from the ego is seen to be the unchanging Pure Consciousness itself. The doubt may have crept into the seeker that Existence is different from Consciousness, due to the difficulty in accepting that the Self is self-revealing.

To clear this doubt, the Maharshi has dedicated this verse.

There is only one Existence-Consciousness, they are not two different entities. If Sat is not Chit, then it has to be Jada (inert) and therefore Asat. If Chit is not Sat, then it can only be Asat. These are mutually self-contradictory statements.

Therefore, Sat has to be the same as Chit. Existence has to be Consciousness itself. It is self-revealing. The statement “I am” unifies the two. The ‘am-ness’ represents Sat, and the self-evident nature of ‘I’ represents Chit.

Now, let us try and understand “Existence (Sat) and Consciousness (Chit)” in a better manner.

SAT is Truth, Existence or Pure Being. SAT is what always remains regardless of time or situation. When we awaken, we constantly recognize Pure Being. We are consciously aware of Pure Being as our true nature, the core and foundation of all life.

CHIT or Consciousness is the first manifestation of our true nature. It is streaming from all of creation. When consciousness becomes conscious of itself, it is like looking in the mirror at your own eyes or looking into the eyes of another. There is a simple and deep recognition of the absolute as yourself and in everything else.

Therefore, Consciousness and Existence are not different things but they are the very nature of the Self or “I”.

I exist because I am conscious of my existence.

I am conscious because I exist.

This is what Maharshi says here that Consciousness is that which illumines its own existence as well as the existence of other objects.

Since it is a difficult subject for those who are reading this for the first time, author shall try and explain this further.

In day before yesterday’s post, we understood what is pure existence/Sat. Let us revise the same.

Following aspects of the “REAL I” makes it Real or Truth or SATHYAM:

·  The real Self is birth less, it has no cause. For everything that we can imagine about us and this creation, there is a cause. SELF alone has no cause and is not an effect of any other cause. Hence, it is birthless.

·   Since it is not created by any cause, it is independent of any other aspect in this creation.

·  Whatever comes and goes, is limited by time. We say that an object comes and goes, only with reference to a time frame in which it came and it went. Since SELF is birthless it is also not limited by time.

·  SELF does not change, does not reduce / disappear. When we have known that the snake appearance is actually a rope, it does not mean that the rope had changed its real identity. It was and it will be always a rope.”

So, when we say we are SELF or AHAM, with the above exposition, we are clear that in reality, we, Aham, upon transcending the 5 koshas as per yesterday’s pour, are birthless, deathless, causeless, not limited by time and do not reduce / disappear even when our body reduces and disappears (dies).

Now, what is in us, which will make us realize / know that we are pure existence, birthless, causeless, beyond time, beyond space, beyond changes?

Just like a pot can exist but we have to have our intellect-mind-sense to be aware that the pot exists, similarly, there has to be something in us, beyond the 5 koshas, which can make us aware that we are birthless, causeless, beyond time, beyond space, beyond changes.

THAT SOMETHING IS CONSCIOUSNESS or SELF ILLUMINED PURE AWARENESS.

Hence, we cannot exist just as pure existence without that awareness that we exist, and we cannot have just an awareness without any existence. So, this existence and awareness / consciousness exist together or, they both are juxtaposed to each other.

The fire which we contemplated in the fire and iron ball example EXISTS and has AWARENESS of its existence. If it is not aware, then how can it transfer awareness to the iron ball which is Jada / inert, for the iron ball to become a fire-ball?

Author has tried his best to explain this profound truth of Upanishads in the most simplistic manner possible.

Readers may revert to him in case they need further clarity on today's post, on SAT and CHIT.

  

Love.

Upadesa Saram - Post 25

Verse 22

विग्रहेन्द्रियप्राणधीतमः |

नाहमेकसत्तज्जडं ह्यसत् || २२ ||

vigrahendriyaprāṇadhītamaḥ |

nāhamekasattajjaḍaṁ hyasat || 22 ||

The body, the senses, the prana, the intellect and ignorance

Are not I, the one Being. That is inert, for it is unreal.

We may call it a coincidence or a miracle or an intuition. Just in the last week, the essence of this very same verse was given to few devotees through recorded talk by the author in two parts.  

The basis of the talk was the verses from Taittreya Upanishad. The essence of the talk is given today as the explanation to this verse. 

  

In this Upanishad, all the 5 Koshas are referred in the verse, viz.,

The Acharya in that Upanishad takes the disciple through all these Koshas one by one and proves the falsity of each one of them, through three tests as follows:-

Gross body

   

Gross body, as even explained by the author in a small talk, is to be considered as a temple in which God is to be installed forever. It has been bestowed on all human beings by the Creator / God, to use it for spiritual sadhana, to retrace to Him, God, which is the very purpose of our birth.

However, if the gross body is taken through the three tests as mentioned above, then we can understand the following.

We are the knower/seer/experiencer of the body and the body is known/experienced.

We are Chaitanya and when compared to us, the body is jada/inert/insentient.

We are changeless whereas our body has undergone so many changes in this birth and we are also assuming a new body in every birth.

Prana is life force, which is very important and is subtler than the gross body. It gives us energy, it prompts hunger / thirst for us, it fills our body with our life.

However,

We are the knower / seer / experiencer of our prana and the prana is known / experienced (We know when we are thirsty, we know when we are hungry, we know when we fall sick, we know when we are active on a particular day and when we are very dull on another day).

We are Chaitanya and when compared to us, the prana is jada / inert / insentient.

We are changeless whereas our prana is subject to change, only due to the changes within, we are sick / we are active / we are tired etc.

Mind is subtler than our Prana and mind is the most powerful equipment granted to us by God. 

However,

We are the knower / seer / experiencer of our mind and the mind is known / experienced. 

We are Chaitanya and when compared to us, the mind is jada / inert / insentient.

We are changeless whereas our mind is jumping from one thought to another and is ever changing.

Subtler than our mind is our Buddhi, our intellect, because intellect discriminates whereas the mind, devoid of intellect, cannot discriminate.

However,

We are the knower / seer / experiencer of our intellect and the intellect, our reasoning, is known/experienced. 

We are Chaitanya and when compared to us, the intellect is jada / inert / insentient.

We are changeless whereas our intellect, our reasoning, our discriminative power has been changing as we grow, as we evolve. 

In our deep sleep, body, mind and intellect are not active. However, there is someone beyond still existing.

Next day, when we get up, there is someone who is the knower, who gives us the knowledge that we had a deep sleep yesterday. So, someone within is the knower and the state of peace, the tranquility experienced in deep sleep is still known.

We are Chaitanya and when compared to us, the deep sleep state is jada / inert / insentient.

Someone within us is still changeless whereas the extent of peace / tranquility changes from night to night.

So, we are able to conclude from the above factors that there is someone beyond all these 5 Koshas who has all the three qualities - The Knower, The Sentient or Chaitanya and The One who is changeless, Nirvikara.

Maharishi claims about the One who is all the three mentioned above and says, “I am not these (the 5 Koshas) but Supreme existence".

Sri Ramana systematically distances the Self from the gross, subtle and the causal bodies, on the basis that they are inert and, in His view, Asat or non-existent. [In earlier texts we have been using the word Mithya for these bodies, not Asat. Mithya is a milder word than Asat].

The spiritual implication of this verse is very significant to the seeker. The verse tells us that we are really free; that our bondage is a mere illusion. This will give great impetus to the seeker to forge ahead in his Sadhana to drop the illusion. 

When one takes the essence of this verse and the exposition given for the verse seriously and meditates on the same, one can actually experience the discarding of all the 5 sheaths / Koshas one by one and can reach to the pure, changeless, conscious existence that One is - THE ATMAN or THE SELF.  

Love.

Upadesa Saram - Post 24

Verse 21

इदमहंपदाभिख्यमन्वहम् |

अहमिलीनकेऽप्यलयसत्तया || २१ ||

idamahaṁpadābhikhyamanvaham |

ahamilīnake'pyalayasattayā || 21 ||

This is viewed as the word “I;” every day,

Even upon the dissolution of “I,” it is undissolved as Being. (21)

What are the two I’s referred to in this post? 

i) The True “I” or Pure Self: This is the unchanging sense of ‘I’ we experience at all times, from birth till death. It is the indestructible Presence of mind, or awareness that makes us conscious of all experiences. This is referred to in an earlier post as “PARAMA PURNA SAT”.

ii) The Individual “I” or Ego: This is the sense of ‘I’-ness felt as a result of our association with our body, mind and intellect. It relates us in a limited way to all objects and sense perceptions. It is also responsible for the sense of possession we feel in thoughts. 

The I-thought is always associating with names and forms, but none of these are real and, in fact, often become the cause of one’s suffering. 

The I-thought itself is unreal as it dissolves in deep sleep into the spiritual Heart. We are unfortunately oblivious of this truth. Our consciousness is not able to witness this as we are constantly in a trance, being stimulated by the objects and the senses that draw us towards them.

When, by enquiry, the Ahamkara (the individual ego) is falsified, in its place, sphurati svayam, shines by Itself, the real "I".

What is the guarantee that this real “I” will also not go away?? It will not go away because it has never come either. 

Following aspects of the “REAL I” makes it Real or Truth or SATHYAM.

·  The real Self is birthless, it has no cause. For everything that we can imagine about us and this creation, there is a cause. SELF alone has no cause and is not an effect of any other cause. Hence, it is birthless.

·    Since it is not created by any cause, it is independent of any other aspect in this creation.

·     Whatever comes and goes, is limited by time. We say that an object comes and goes, only with reference to a time frame in which it came and it went. Since SELF is birthless, it is also not limited by time.

·     SELF does not change, does not reduce / disappear. When we have known that the snake appearance is actually a rope, it does not mean that the rope had changed its real identity. It was and it will be always a rope. 

Love.