Staying on this same topic, let us further explore how we can investigate the subject of birth and death and get to the Truth. As we already learned, the body is nothing but the combination of five elements (earth, water, fire, air and space). After so called 'death' of the body, the elements mix back with the universal elements. Meaning thereby that there is no such thing as "my individual water" or "my individual space" (although myspace.com may object to that statement!!) or "my individual air". Air is air, water is water and space is space. In the same way, consciousness is consciousness. There is nothing like individual consciousness or universal consciousness. However, for the sake of understanding and clarity, a Guru may use such terms. After so called 'death', the consciousness no longer having a vehicle for its expression (i.e. the body), returns to universal consciousness. There is no actual return as such. For example, the space inside an earthen pot is the same as the space outside the pot. On breaking the earthen pot, the space inside does not actually 'return' to the space outside. Space inside mixes up with space outside, really? You get the point.
As already explained elsewhere in this blog, consciousness is like electricity. Electricity is electricity. There is no essential difference between electricity in Mexico and electricity in Holland or electricity in China or Russia. Just like electricity can function in different forms and produce different effects, consciousness does so too. Electricity functioning through a fan produces a breeze, through an oven produces heat, through an air-conditioner produces cooling, through a radio produces sound, or through a motor produces motion. In the same way, consciousness expressing through different forms like humans, dogs or worms produces different effects. The consciousness expressing in the body through various permutations and combinations of the gunas (attributes or gunas are Sattva, Rajas,and Tamas) give rise to unlimited personalities in the same species. The effects can be many but the cause is one.
For something to die it must be born. Keeping it simple, we can see that the elements are not born for they were there before the so called birth of 'my body'. Similarly, the consciousness is not born with the birth of "my body". So, what exactly is born? Can you not SEE the obvious? Nothing is born and therefore nothing dies. What happens is that the consciousness no longer expresses itself through that particular body. Where is the question of birth and death other than a concept created in the mind based on the primary concept of being 'born' as a separate and independent body-mind entity called "me"?
Having heard and digested all of the above, who and what are you? In what capacity are "you" going to change or do anything?
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Dead and Gone-Part 2
Often the entity or person that is supposedly dead is also the one that you loved very much. For instance, and just for instance as an example, it could be one of your parents. Sorry for this rather stark analogy but it serves the purpose of Awakening you. You loved your mother a lot when she was alive. For all your life, you assumed your mother was the body that she represented. You saw that same body change continuously just like yours. The change could be called deterioration of the body. Perhaps, the change in the body was minimal and the so called 'death' came suddenly. In any case, the object of your love suddenly seemed to have vanished into thin air. Precisely, into thin air. For, if indeed she was the body, the body was still there after the so called 'death'. So, you may ask "where did my mother go?".
If you pause to think over this carefully, you may wonder who was it that was your mother? She certainly could not be the body for it is lying there in an inert condition and refusing to respond to any stimuli from the external world. Despite your crying for her, she refuses to respond. You are in dismay, for the object of your love, the body, is suddenly refusing to respond to your show of emotion and love. So, who is it that you loved if not the body? Who is it that you called "mom" and where is she now?
In some cultures and traditions, the dead body is cremated leaving behind the ashes. After all the body is merely a product of the five elements (earth, water, fire, air and space) and all that is left now is the ashes i.e carbon, which is a product of the earth. Is it possible that all along you were loving this carbon ash? Certainly not! Is it not the entity (or non-entity to be more precise) that animated your mother's body that you actually loved? THAT which is responsible for the animation of your "mother's body", would that not be the same for "your body"? THAT which gives rise to the sense "I am" to your mother, would that not be the same for "your body"? Now that your mother is "dead", she no longer has the Knowledge of Being i.e. she is no longer able to say "I am" or for that matter "I am not" either. So, all along what you thought you loved (as a personality i.e. your mother) was none other than that I AM(the Beingness), which is also WHO YOU ARE (I AM). So, in fact you were loving your own Self all along except that you viewed that body as someone else i.e. your mother. You had failed to see the substratum that animated the gross body. You had failed to see the Beingness- the same Beingness which animates "your body". Call IT by whatever name or label you want, but there should be no doubt that what you loved all along was none other than your own Self.
So, you can see that pondering over concepts like birth and death can open up avenues to know your True Nature. Now that you Know, keep meditating on that Beingness.
If you pause to think over this carefully, you may wonder who was it that was your mother? She certainly could not be the body for it is lying there in an inert condition and refusing to respond to any stimuli from the external world. Despite your crying for her, she refuses to respond. You are in dismay, for the object of your love, the body, is suddenly refusing to respond to your show of emotion and love. So, who is it that you loved if not the body? Who is it that you called "mom" and where is she now?
In some cultures and traditions, the dead body is cremated leaving behind the ashes. After all the body is merely a product of the five elements (earth, water, fire, air and space) and all that is left now is the ashes i.e carbon, which is a product of the earth. Is it possible that all along you were loving this carbon ash? Certainly not! Is it not the entity (or non-entity to be more precise) that animated your mother's body that you actually loved? THAT which is responsible for the animation of your "mother's body", would that not be the same for "your body"? THAT which gives rise to the sense "I am" to your mother, would that not be the same for "your body"? Now that your mother is "dead", she no longer has the Knowledge of Being i.e. she is no longer able to say "I am" or for that matter "I am not" either. So, all along what you thought you loved (as a personality i.e. your mother) was none other than that I AM(the Beingness), which is also WHO YOU ARE (I AM). So, in fact you were loving your own Self all along except that you viewed that body as someone else i.e. your mother. You had failed to see the substratum that animated the gross body. You had failed to see the Beingness- the same Beingness which animates "your body". Call IT by whatever name or label you want, but there should be no doubt that what you loved all along was none other than your own Self.
So, you can see that pondering over concepts like birth and death can open up avenues to know your True Nature. Now that you Know, keep meditating on that Beingness.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Dead and Gone- Part 1
We have so much to learn from death. In fact a close scrutiny or investigation of death as an event, may in fact give the answer to who you really are or the Truth. There are lots of questions which arise when someone close to you dies. Once the process of grieving is over, it may be an opportunity to investigate further into this matter, if one is so inclined. Assuming that all those who read this blog are already well ingrained in the philosophy of Advaita, one does not have to wonder where this is leading to.
In all languages, when someone dies, it is common to say that so-and-so "is dead and gone". Which brings to the question as to WHO is it that is dead. And further, TO WHERE HAS THE DEAD PERSON GONE? In that case, is it not appropriate to ask as WHO is it that is born in the first place. Alternatively, where did the person come from? For, if one has to be gone, it is assumed that one has firstly got to come from somewhere. You cannot go anywhere unless you have come from somewhere.
Merely having a discussion on this subject is not at all enough. Most discussions would involve what you have heard or learnt from someone. Depending on your upbringing, you may come up with answers that were told to you by someone or the other. A dead person is certainly not going to be of much help either! So, the answer has to come from you itself.
So, where should one begin? It would be most appropriate to begin with birth since there cannot be death without birth. There cannot be life without death and death without life or birth. But, if that seems like too much and you want to stick to the topic of death, so be it. Since, so far you have associated yourself with being the body, it should be assumed that the body is the one that is dead. Well, the body does not go anywhere after death, does it? The body is still there in the coffin. The only thing is that it has stopped responding to its name being called out. The body does not say "I am dead". So, who is it that has died and gone if it is not the body? Keep your mind pondering over this question. Of course, you can accuse the author of not giving the answer since it would be so much easier. But, in that case, you can also accuse the author of providing the answer based on the author's viewpoint and therefore brush it off as yet another philosophical concept. More so, if the answer is given here then it would be similar to all other indirect knowledge that you have so far accumulated. But, don't feel abandoned. Keep pondering over this and the answer shall come to you from within your own self.
The next point to ponder over is "where did he/she come from?" if he/she has died and gone. Find out who or what is the personality that arrived in this world so spontaneously and left so spontaneously. If it is not the body, then why do you say that your birth day is the day the body came out your mother's womb? Can you deny the fact that the body was already there in the womb prior to its exit out of the womb? Also, is there not something fundamentally wrong in saying that birth is the appearance of the baby body from the mothers womb, but that death is not the disappearance of that same body. Or to put it more bluntly, if birth=appearance of body, then death should be =disappearance of the body. But you know that it is not how it is. The body remains right where it is after so called death. So, obviously, whoever it is that is born is certainly not the body. Then, who is it that is born and and who is it that dies, if it is not the body? In fact, is there anything like birth and death? Or is it yet another delusion that you have fallen for?
Ponder over this carefully till you get the answer from within. You will be amazed when you get the answer.
In all languages, when someone dies, it is common to say that so-and-so "is dead and gone". Which brings to the question as to WHO is it that is dead. And further, TO WHERE HAS THE DEAD PERSON GONE? In that case, is it not appropriate to ask as WHO is it that is born in the first place. Alternatively, where did the person come from? For, if one has to be gone, it is assumed that one has firstly got to come from somewhere. You cannot go anywhere unless you have come from somewhere.
Merely having a discussion on this subject is not at all enough. Most discussions would involve what you have heard or learnt from someone. Depending on your upbringing, you may come up with answers that were told to you by someone or the other. A dead person is certainly not going to be of much help either! So, the answer has to come from you itself.
So, where should one begin? It would be most appropriate to begin with birth since there cannot be death without birth. There cannot be life without death and death without life or birth. But, if that seems like too much and you want to stick to the topic of death, so be it. Since, so far you have associated yourself with being the body, it should be assumed that the body is the one that is dead. Well, the body does not go anywhere after death, does it? The body is still there in the coffin. The only thing is that it has stopped responding to its name being called out. The body does not say "I am dead". So, who is it that has died and gone if it is not the body? Keep your mind pondering over this question. Of course, you can accuse the author of not giving the answer since it would be so much easier. But, in that case, you can also accuse the author of providing the answer based on the author's viewpoint and therefore brush it off as yet another philosophical concept. More so, if the answer is given here then it would be similar to all other indirect knowledge that you have so far accumulated. But, don't feel abandoned. Keep pondering over this and the answer shall come to you from within your own self.
The next point to ponder over is "where did he/she come from?" if he/she has died and gone. Find out who or what is the personality that arrived in this world so spontaneously and left so spontaneously. If it is not the body, then why do you say that your birth day is the day the body came out your mother's womb? Can you deny the fact that the body was already there in the womb prior to its exit out of the womb? Also, is there not something fundamentally wrong in saying that birth is the appearance of the baby body from the mothers womb, but that death is not the disappearance of that same body. Or to put it more bluntly, if birth=appearance of body, then death should be =disappearance of the body. But you know that it is not how it is. The body remains right where it is after so called death. So, obviously, whoever it is that is born is certainly not the body. Then, who is it that is born and and who is it that dies, if it is not the body? In fact, is there anything like birth and death? Or is it yet another delusion that you have fallen for?
Ponder over this carefully till you get the answer from within. You will be amazed when you get the answer.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The Paths of Knowledge and Devotion are Inseparable
As already mentioned previously by this author and others, the path of Jnana (Knowledge) and the path of Bhakti (Devotion) are one and the same. In fact, they are inseparable. True Devotion means complete surrender to God. The word "complete" means that there should be no vestige of a "me" anymore. A true Bhakta (Devotee) would say "I have surrendered everything to God including myself. There is no "me" to perform any action". A true Bhakta Realizes that all there is, is God. In surrendering, the Bhakta has Realized the True Peace and Bliss, which is the nature of God/ Self. He is one with the Knowledge of his own Being.
The Jnani (Realized) has essentially surrendered to God through Knowledge. The Jnani also has come to the same Realization that all there is, is God. There is no thing apart from God. The Jnani is also a Bhakta, since his attention is always focused on God. Devotion is none other than attention to Self or God. In essence, the Jnani and Bhakta are one and the same. The Jnani cannot not be a Bhakta and vice versa.
Differentiation and discussions regarding the same, between these two so-called paths is merely for the ignorant. A true Bhakta and Jnani know that there is no question of a path since there is absolutely no question of any entity or thing apart from Self (or God). All is ONE and ONE is All.
The Jnani (Realized) has essentially surrendered to God through Knowledge. The Jnani also has come to the same Realization that all there is, is God. There is no thing apart from God. The Jnani is also a Bhakta, since his attention is always focused on God. Devotion is none other than attention to Self or God. In essence, the Jnani and Bhakta are one and the same. The Jnani cannot not be a Bhakta and vice versa.
Differentiation and discussions regarding the same, between these two so-called paths is merely for the ignorant. A true Bhakta and Jnani know that there is no question of a path since there is absolutely no question of any entity or thing apart from Self (or God). All is ONE and ONE is All.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Just This Ordinary Awareness
This essay is meant to dispel any misconceptions one may still have about what is being pointed to in advaita teachings. The teaching is actually very simple. Unfortunately, because of the conditioning of the mind, various concepts are created by the mind. Thereby, the simplicity of the teaching gets covered by various concepts which lead to further concepts and one gets lost in the jungle of concepts. There is no doubt that this very author in an attempt to clarify one concept may have unwillingly and unwittingly created many more and perhaps contributed to the confusion of many a seeker. One has to get back to the basics and stay there and ponder over the teachings carefully and repeatedly to Realize the Truth.
Who YOU really, really ARE is THIS SIMPLE ORDINARY AWARENESS. Yes, indeed it is that simple! Then why is it that everyone cannot understand what is being pointed to? Simply because most readers and seekers are trying to approach this with a very strongly established identity with the body and mind. An identity of being someone, of being so and so. If only one could somehow let go and simply dive deep into the source of the mind, without worrying about losing themselves or gaining anything from this adventure, then one would easily Realize the simplicity of Truth. While, this may seem to many like one is being given the run around, it is not so. It is not because of a lack in what the Guru has to say to the student that the student did not get it. On the contrary, it is merely because the student's mind would not accept on face value what the Guru was trying to convey.
So, while you are seated at your computer or where ever you are at this moment, stop and take a moment to LISTEN to the pointers. Do not get lost in the words! Instead, ponder over the MEANING of the words. Clear the mind of all concepts, right now. Answer the questions which you yourself must pose to yourself. Do not give up until you get an answer.
OK. Right now, can you say for sure that you are aware of sitting and looking at this material? Can you deny the fact that you are aware of both your existence and the fact that you are awake? Did someone have to give you that knowledge or information? Is it not self effulgent. You KNOW you ARE. You are AWARE of being. Did you do something to be aware? Is it not spontaneous? Even without a thought you KNOW you ARE. This ordinary AWARENESS cannot be questioned. It is PRESENT - or should we say it is PRESENCE itself. Thoughts give one the feeling of movement because of identifying oneself with the thoughts. But, in reality, this Awareness is not moving. It is Still. What can one say about Awareness when one identifies with the Awareness? Any attempt to say or think anything is a movement and movement is mind. All one can say is that one is aware of thinking. So, it is ineffable. Can one even begin to try to assign a beginning to this Awareness? Not at all, since time is an appearance in this Awareness.
In deep sleep when there are no thoughts, can you deny that you ARE? In fact, you can say nothing in that state of deep sleep. One can only say or think something in the waking state. You cannot deny the fact that there is Awareness in deep sleep as you can testify to your being asleep when there is wakefulness in the morning. It becomes evident that all of this discussion and pondering is actually just a play of the mind. In fact, in the absence of the mind, there is just Awareness. There is no such thing as mind. It is only a matter of the mind to come to this conclusion. That is it.
Yes, it is as simple as this. The problem is that most readers and seekers will not have complete and unequivocal faith in the words of the Guru and therefore keep floundering around in the world of spirituality, collecting and analyzing more and more concepts. Eventually, the seeker is lost in the world of concepts. Concepts which create various classifications and systems of Self Realization, and concepts which create more and more methodologies of attaining Realization. One teacher may say do this, while another teacher may point to another method and yet another teacher may point in a totally different direction or method of achieving Nirvana or Salvation or Liberation or whatever other word that comes to mind. The more you seek, the more you get lost in the concepts. What is wrong with just BEING?
Yet, all along, THAT (GOD) one has been searching for has been a constant Companion. A Companion who has never left you even for a moment. Not only that, there is nothing more obvious than Awareness. No method. No technique. No teachings. No Do-er, no doing and nothing to be done. Just BE AS YOU ALREADY ARE.
Who YOU really, really ARE is THIS SIMPLE ORDINARY AWARENESS. Yes, indeed it is that simple! Then why is it that everyone cannot understand what is being pointed to? Simply because most readers and seekers are trying to approach this with a very strongly established identity with the body and mind. An identity of being someone, of being so and so. If only one could somehow let go and simply dive deep into the source of the mind, without worrying about losing themselves or gaining anything from this adventure, then one would easily Realize the simplicity of Truth. While, this may seem to many like one is being given the run around, it is not so. It is not because of a lack in what the Guru has to say to the student that the student did not get it. On the contrary, it is merely because the student's mind would not accept on face value what the Guru was trying to convey.
So, while you are seated at your computer or where ever you are at this moment, stop and take a moment to LISTEN to the pointers. Do not get lost in the words! Instead, ponder over the MEANING of the words. Clear the mind of all concepts, right now. Answer the questions which you yourself must pose to yourself. Do not give up until you get an answer.
OK. Right now, can you say for sure that you are aware of sitting and looking at this material? Can you deny the fact that you are aware of both your existence and the fact that you are awake? Did someone have to give you that knowledge or information? Is it not self effulgent. You KNOW you ARE. You are AWARE of being. Did you do something to be aware? Is it not spontaneous? Even without a thought you KNOW you ARE. This ordinary AWARENESS cannot be questioned. It is PRESENT - or should we say it is PRESENCE itself. Thoughts give one the feeling of movement because of identifying oneself with the thoughts. But, in reality, this Awareness is not moving. It is Still. What can one say about Awareness when one identifies with the Awareness? Any attempt to say or think anything is a movement and movement is mind. All one can say is that one is aware of thinking. So, it is ineffable. Can one even begin to try to assign a beginning to this Awareness? Not at all, since time is an appearance in this Awareness.
In deep sleep when there are no thoughts, can you deny that you ARE? In fact, you can say nothing in that state of deep sleep. One can only say or think something in the waking state. You cannot deny the fact that there is Awareness in deep sleep as you can testify to your being asleep when there is wakefulness in the morning. It becomes evident that all of this discussion and pondering is actually just a play of the mind. In fact, in the absence of the mind, there is just Awareness. There is no such thing as mind. It is only a matter of the mind to come to this conclusion. That is it.
Yes, it is as simple as this. The problem is that most readers and seekers will not have complete and unequivocal faith in the words of the Guru and therefore keep floundering around in the world of spirituality, collecting and analyzing more and more concepts. Eventually, the seeker is lost in the world of concepts. Concepts which create various classifications and systems of Self Realization, and concepts which create more and more methodologies of attaining Realization. One teacher may say do this, while another teacher may point to another method and yet another teacher may point in a totally different direction or method of achieving Nirvana or Salvation or Liberation or whatever other word that comes to mind. The more you seek, the more you get lost in the concepts. What is wrong with just BEING?
Yet, all along, THAT (GOD) one has been searching for has been a constant Companion. A Companion who has never left you even for a moment. Not only that, there is nothing more obvious than Awareness. No method. No technique. No teachings. No Do-er, no doing and nothing to be done. Just BE AS YOU ALREADY ARE.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Devotion After Realization
Realization is spontaneous. There is actually nothing any one does or can do to "attain" Realization. For, in reality, there is no individual entity apart from the omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient ONE. So, where is the question of a separate entity if all is ONE. In that case, the topic of today's discussion is an oxymoron, isn't it? It seems to be a total contradiction of what is just said above. So, why is it important to have devotion even after so-called Realization?
While Realization of one's own True Nature is effortless, becoming established or abiding in the Reality is not so. The pull of Maya (illusion) is very strong. All of this is Maya. This discussion and the quest for Realization is all part of Maya. The Ego is a ghost but a strong ghost. It has established its identity and strength over time and there is no way the Ego is giving up without a fight. In fact, this is well established in all ancient mythological stories as the fight between the good and the evil. The evil in this case would be the Ego. Strangely, it is the ego fighting the ego, since this entire play is happening in the mind (which is nothing but the ego itself!). Confusing? Well, this is where the ego eventually wins over if not guarded against. The mind will create all types of thoughts which will doubt the very Realization. While one may have an Understanding, the trap of the Ego is ever present. True Realization comes when the Ego does not rise up anymore.
This is where the Guru comes to the rescue as always. Constant devotion to the Guru is a must to remain established in Reality. Constant devotion is no different than constant attention to the Guru. Even though the Guru may be thought of as a form (Saguna), it is intuitively known that the Guru is the formless Light who is within all (Nirguna). Remember that all forms and manifestation arise from the formless Unmanifest. There is no difference between form and formless. The formless is the Satguru. For the mind, it may be easy to express devotion to the Guru with a form. It does not matter so long as devotion is directed towards the Guru. Praying to the Guru and having one's attention directed towards the Guru at all times is absolutely essential in remaining established in one's own Reality.
May the Satguru pull you within into the Ocean of Bliss and Peace.
The author remains eternally grateful and pays his obeisance at the feet of the Satguru, who in the manifest form appeared as Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj to reveal the Truth.
While Realization of one's own True Nature is effortless, becoming established or abiding in the Reality is not so. The pull of Maya (illusion) is very strong. All of this is Maya. This discussion and the quest for Realization is all part of Maya. The Ego is a ghost but a strong ghost. It has established its identity and strength over time and there is no way the Ego is giving up without a fight. In fact, this is well established in all ancient mythological stories as the fight between the good and the evil. The evil in this case would be the Ego. Strangely, it is the ego fighting the ego, since this entire play is happening in the mind (which is nothing but the ego itself!). Confusing? Well, this is where the ego eventually wins over if not guarded against. The mind will create all types of thoughts which will doubt the very Realization. While one may have an Understanding, the trap of the Ego is ever present. True Realization comes when the Ego does not rise up anymore.
This is where the Guru comes to the rescue as always. Constant devotion to the Guru is a must to remain established in Reality. Constant devotion is no different than constant attention to the Guru. Even though the Guru may be thought of as a form (Saguna), it is intuitively known that the Guru is the formless Light who is within all (Nirguna). Remember that all forms and manifestation arise from the formless Unmanifest. There is no difference between form and formless. The formless is the Satguru. For the mind, it may be easy to express devotion to the Guru with a form. It does not matter so long as devotion is directed towards the Guru. Praying to the Guru and having one's attention directed towards the Guru at all times is absolutely essential in remaining established in one's own Reality.
May the Satguru pull you within into the Ocean of Bliss and Peace.
The author remains eternally grateful and pays his obeisance at the feet of the Satguru, who in the manifest form appeared as Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta Maharaj to reveal the Truth.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
No Pathway To Heaven
It is true that most if not all people hold the idea of a Heaven and hell. An After life, so to speak. The sad thing is that they have not figured out about this current life! Yet, it is amazing to see the amount of discussion and literature on After life and Heaven or hell. This is indeed part of the amazing story, the story created by the power of Maya (illusion). Maya tries to draw you more and more into the illusion and you willingly fall for it. You are in this free fall of confusion and suffering and all you pray for is to go to heaven one day. A Heaven, where you hope you will eventually become free from all this suffering created by this manifestation. A picture of Heaven has been instilled in your mind by various sources and now there is something to look forward to. Ah!, a place of utter happiness, which will be an escape from this miserable world. Yet, you have no evidence or knowledge of Heaven. You are eager to know about this Heaven. This is the beacon of hope for you. A hope that will you keep your mind distracted from the present circumstances. You may ask yourself "but what is wrong with hope?". After all, you have been told by many spiritual leaders that hope is your best bet to end this present cycle of suffering and misery.
With this idea in mind, you go about your frustrating life. One fine day, you wonder if this is all a false hope. You are now very desperate to find out about this whole story of life and after life? What about the NOW? What can I do about now, this very life? You are now very eager to KNOW your own self and the relationship between your self and the world and Heaven and all else. And you start praying for an answer. An answer to know who you are and what is this life and what exactly is Heaven and who is God. If indeed the desire to KNOW is sincere and honest, then out of nowhere the Guru appears. There is an ancient saying in the East- 'when the student is ready-the teacher appears'. This saying is very true and those who have had this experience will testify to the same.
The Guru gives you the knowledge about your own self. He says that you must first know your self and then you shall know everything. But, but,....what about.....?, you have so many questions. The Guru asks you to remain attentive to your own self, this undeniable feeling of being, this undeniable sense of presence, this undeniable knowingness, this undeniable knowledge that you are. You trust your Guru for you have complete and unshakeable faith in the Guru. You do exactly as He says. You trust the words of the Guru. You have the CONVICTION in the words of the Guru. For the Guru has come to you and has taken the trouble to find you, that is the least you can do for the Guru. Faith and conviction is all He is asking for.
Nothing more needs to be done. Just CONVICTION in the Guru. Then suddenly in a flash, you Realize your True Nature, your own Self. With this Realization, everything becomes CLEAR. Everything unravels. All the questions fall away. You Realize that you are NOT an entity called "me". Never have been. Indeed, you are the Pure Awareness in which everything appears. Everything, including Heaven. Appearances have no reality. Pure Awareness is the only Reality. You have always been and always will be the Pure Awareness. Pure Awareness IS. There is no question of a heaven or hell or afterlife. You have Realized that Heaven is WITHIN YOU. Where is the question of a pathway to Heaven? And more importantly, TO WHOM?
The author pays homage to the Guru who is in ALL.
With this idea in mind, you go about your frustrating life. One fine day, you wonder if this is all a false hope. You are now very desperate to find out about this whole story of life and after life? What about the NOW? What can I do about now, this very life? You are now very eager to KNOW your own self and the relationship between your self and the world and Heaven and all else. And you start praying for an answer. An answer to know who you are and what is this life and what exactly is Heaven and who is God. If indeed the desire to KNOW is sincere and honest, then out of nowhere the Guru appears. There is an ancient saying in the East- 'when the student is ready-the teacher appears'. This saying is very true and those who have had this experience will testify to the same.
The Guru gives you the knowledge about your own self. He says that you must first know your self and then you shall know everything. But, but,....what about.....?, you have so many questions. The Guru asks you to remain attentive to your own self, this undeniable feeling of being, this undeniable sense of presence, this undeniable knowingness, this undeniable knowledge that you are. You trust your Guru for you have complete and unshakeable faith in the Guru. You do exactly as He says. You trust the words of the Guru. You have the CONVICTION in the words of the Guru. For the Guru has come to you and has taken the trouble to find you, that is the least you can do for the Guru. Faith and conviction is all He is asking for.
Nothing more needs to be done. Just CONVICTION in the Guru. Then suddenly in a flash, you Realize your True Nature, your own Self. With this Realization, everything becomes CLEAR. Everything unravels. All the questions fall away. You Realize that you are NOT an entity called "me". Never have been. Indeed, you are the Pure Awareness in which everything appears. Everything, including Heaven. Appearances have no reality. Pure Awareness is the only Reality. You have always been and always will be the Pure Awareness. Pure Awareness IS. There is no question of a heaven or hell or afterlife. You have Realized that Heaven is WITHIN YOU. Where is the question of a pathway to Heaven? And more importantly, TO WHOM?
The author pays homage to the Guru who is in ALL.
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