It is suggested that you read Part 1 of this article before reading this part. As is evident after reading part 1, that this can all be quite confusing to the ordinary mind that is conditioned to create a concept out of every bit of knowledge. What is being pointed to in Advaita literature is beyond the reach of the mind as the mind is a content of THAT and there is no way one can describe THAT with the mind. It is similar to one being unable to see their own eyes without a mirror. The reflection in the mirror is not your real eye, but the reflection definitely gives you an idea of how your eyes appear to others when they see your eyes. The pointers are all meant to give you an idea of what Reality is, but nothing beyond that. One has to leave the mental concepts behind and let intuitive process take over. Let us see if there is some analogy that will make the discussion of the Absolute and consciousness easy. Remember this is just an analogy and cannot obviously be taken at face value.
Let us take the example of the computer. Right now you are in front of one of the computer monitors, it is assumed. The computer runs on electricity or electrical power. The computer can be compared to the physical body. The computer memory or the hard drive is the brain. It stores previous memories and also is able to display the knowledge based on its previous memory (education or knowledge put in) through the computer screen or monitor (similar to your organs of speech etc.). The electricity can be compared to consciousness, which is required for the computer to function. The computer can display its knowledge through the monitor or the speakers only if there is electricity (consciousness). Therefore, the consciousness is the power that makes this physical body function. When the computer is in the sleep mode, there is no sound coming from the speakers and nothing seen on the monitor. The knowledge or memory is still intact in the computer and it can easily be woken up on the touch of a key. In the same way, when the physical body is asleep, the knowledge cannot be displayed as the organs of speech and action are all asleep at the same time. The consciousness is however latent in the body for on waking up all these organs function to allow the body to display its knowledge. If the electricity (consciousness) is completely cut off, there is no way the computer (the physical body) can function. The computer can no longer display its knowledge, whether through sound or the monitor. Although, the memory chips and the hard drive are still in the computer, it cannot function. The computer is said to be "dead". Just like the physical body which is unable to function without consciousness and is called "dead". Now, what are the memory chips and the hard drive made up of? Are they not made of silicon and metal and other inert material? Just like the physical body which is made up of water, carbon, oxygen, etc., all inert materials? So, it becomes clear that it is the consciousness (electricity) that is the basis of functioning of the inert material of the physical body or in the case of this analogy, the computer. So, who has the knowledge? The inert material of the computer or the electricity (consciousness)? Is it not clear that all knowledge is in the realm of consciousness, including the knowledge of being a 'me'? Don't get excited as yet!!
Now, the electricity itself has to come from somewhere, isn't it? THAT which creates electricity is the source of electricity. In the same way, THAT as the Absolute, is the source of consciousness. Or to put it more precisely, the consciousness is a reflection of the Absolute. Of course, the flaw in this analogy would be the fact that electricity comes from coal, or nuclear material, or hydro (water) and therefore cannot be a perfect analogy as such. However, if you can somehow accept the fact that water or coal or uranium by itself is inert and there is some force or energy that is released from these materials to create electricity, then the analogy seems more acceptable. Okay? So, everything is essentially energy (or contains energy like the coal etc.) and it is just the energy that is able to make everything function. However, if you actually look for energy, it is not something tangible and has no shape (roopam) or form. It is not something that can be described other than saying that it is some force that makes things happen or move or function. THAT (the Absolute) is not concerned about what is being done with the electricity (consciousness) or for that matter how the functioning is taking place. While all the functioning is taking place in consciousness, the Absolute is not affected by the functioning in any way. YOU ARE THE ABSOLUTE!
At this time, the one thing you are absolutely sure of, is the fact that you are conscious. You did not do anything to be conscious, did you? It arose spontaneously. Is there any way for a 'me' to attain or go prior to or beyond consciousness? Can a 'me' actually transcend consciousness? If so, who is this 'me' that wants to do so? Can there be a thought of a 'me' or 'I' without consciousness? Does this not make it clear that this whole process of transcending consciousness is actually a game played in the mind, by the mind and for the mind ( a 'me'). In reality, there is no entity called 'me' that can transcend consciousness for the 'me' is nothing but a subsequent product of consciousness. It is similar to a shadow wanting to get behind the object that created it in the first place! So, what do you want to do?
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Transcending Consciousness-Part 1
The consciousness is your friend, as well as paradoxically, your enemy if you do not transcend it. It is doorway to the Absolute (the Parabrahman- para meaning prior to or beyond). Right now the only connection you have to the Absolute is the consciousness. This consciousness is the source of all manifestation. As long as the physical body is nourished, the consciousness will continue to function through that body. When the body "dies", the consciousness merges with the universal consciousness and the body which is made up of the elements merges with the elements (water, air, earth, etc.). This consciousness is the source of the thought "I am". With this knowledge that you are (the knowingness- I am) you are able to say " I have knowledge". Based on this basic or primary knowledge that you exist, you are able to build all other mental concepts. And on these concepts, you want to build yet another concept of the Absolute or Parabrahman or whatever else you want to label THAT. However, you have ignored the primary concept of the knowledge that you are and instead have been chasing useless concepts. This Knowledge (that I am) has no name (namam) or form (roopam). Being formless and abstract, you have ignored this primary knowledge or knowingness or consciousness. This message 'I am' (consciousness) is the gateway or the door to the Absolute. The consciousness is your friend as hanging on to it will lead you to its source, which is the Absolute. The Absolute is beyond any words or mental concepts. Therefore, all that you can know is only in the realm of consciousness. Realize that!
Everything that is consumed or exhausted is unreal- meaning, not permanent. While consciousness is a reflection of the Absolute, it is unreal in the sense that it can manifest only through a body. If the body is not maintained and nourished, then the consciousness can no longer function through it. Since this body will eventually be exhausted, the consciousness itself is not going to last forever. But, it is all that is available to you. It is the source of all knowledge.
Therefore, after knowing the consciousness, one must not stop there and realize that the REAL YOU are PRIOR TO CONSCIOUSNESS. Many a seeker will stop at the level of consciousness and assume that the manifestation is real. Being grounded in consciousness, one is falsely led to believe that the world and the universe is real. Therefore, the statement that "the consciousness can be your enemy". To be in one's True State, one must discard even this consciousness as unreal and transcend it.
Once one fully understands the nature of consciousness, it is imperative to realize that you are not just the consciousness. The consciousness is the gateway or the doorway to the Absolute. You are at the boundary between consciousness and no-consciousness. Leaving consciousness behind, one is in the Natural State or the Absolute. You are THAT which is prior to consciousness. Having said that, consciousness is all that you have to express any kind of knowledge. Even this writing is because of consciousness and in consciousness. And because of consciousness, it is being read and comprehended by consciousness itself. In fact, all of this is happening in consciousness. There is no one (no entity) doing anything. Therefore, everything is consciousness. The content of consciousness is consciousness.
You are the KNOWER OF CONSCIOUSNESS. Since the Absolute is beyond any words, only pointers can be used to describe your True Nature, which is the Absolute. The word THAT is only a pointer to your Natural or True State.
Everything that is consumed or exhausted is unreal- meaning, not permanent. While consciousness is a reflection of the Absolute, it is unreal in the sense that it can manifest only through a body. If the body is not maintained and nourished, then the consciousness can no longer function through it. Since this body will eventually be exhausted, the consciousness itself is not going to last forever. But, it is all that is available to you. It is the source of all knowledge.
Therefore, after knowing the consciousness, one must not stop there and realize that the REAL YOU are PRIOR TO CONSCIOUSNESS. Many a seeker will stop at the level of consciousness and assume that the manifestation is real. Being grounded in consciousness, one is falsely led to believe that the world and the universe is real. Therefore, the statement that "the consciousness can be your enemy". To be in one's True State, one must discard even this consciousness as unreal and transcend it.
Once one fully understands the nature of consciousness, it is imperative to realize that you are not just the consciousness. The consciousness is the gateway or the doorway to the Absolute. You are at the boundary between consciousness and no-consciousness. Leaving consciousness behind, one is in the Natural State or the Absolute. You are THAT which is prior to consciousness. Having said that, consciousness is all that you have to express any kind of knowledge. Even this writing is because of consciousness and in consciousness. And because of consciousness, it is being read and comprehended by consciousness itself. In fact, all of this is happening in consciousness. There is no one (no entity) doing anything. Therefore, everything is consciousness. The content of consciousness is consciousness.
You are the KNOWER OF CONSCIOUSNESS. Since the Absolute is beyond any words, only pointers can be used to describe your True Nature, which is the Absolute. The word THAT is only a pointer to your Natural or True State.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
"Who am I?" is Not a Mantra
Seeker: You say that I am the consciousness and not the body. Should I keep repeating "I am the consciousness" or should I keep saying to myself " Who am I"?
Advaitin: There are many paths to the essentially path-less Truth. If you have complete and earnest faith in the sayings of the Guru, then nothing else need be done other than accepting his/her sayings. With this acceptance comes automatic surrender of the ego. With the surrender of the ego, the Truth shines forth spontaneously. Do not forget that the Truth is self-shining and always present. It is only the ignorance of the ego-mind that hides or covers up the obvious Truth. Once the ego has surrendered completely and wholly to the Guru, then nothing else need be done. The Grace takes over from where the seeker has full faith in the teachings of the Guru.
However, many a seeker will not be satisfied with the above methodology. The ego being so heavily conditioned over the years, a lot of questions and doubts keep popping up in the mind. For such a seeker, self inquiry is the only way to sort out the false from the Truth. One can only know objectively the false. You can only know what you are not. The Truth is known only as an intuitive knowledge. Questioning "who am I" is not a mantra to be repeated endlessly. It is a process of elimination of the false- the elimination of what you are not! Once, all the false has been eliminated, the Truth is laid bare. It is like removing the contamination from cloudy water and immediately the reflection of your self is visible in the pure water. Once the mind has been cleared of all impurities (the false identifications and false concepts), the Truth/ Self shines in it spontaneously. Once the Knowledge is clearly apperceived, where is the need to go on investigating? Once the culprit is found, the police does not keep the investigation open, does it? You know you are a man or a woman. Do you keep repeating to yourself, " I am a man" or "I am a woman"? So, where is the question of repeating " I am the consciousness" to yourself? Such repetition is nothing but another form of mental conditioning. It defeats the whole purpose which is to destroy mental conditioning and mental concepts. Yes, an apparent process of continued self- investigation must be continued until firm conviction of the nature of the Self is established and the realization of one's True Nature is firm.
In the absence of any concepts, you ARE. Stay as you ARE.
Advaitin: There are many paths to the essentially path-less Truth. If you have complete and earnest faith in the sayings of the Guru, then nothing else need be done other than accepting his/her sayings. With this acceptance comes automatic surrender of the ego. With the surrender of the ego, the Truth shines forth spontaneously. Do not forget that the Truth is self-shining and always present. It is only the ignorance of the ego-mind that hides or covers up the obvious Truth. Once the ego has surrendered completely and wholly to the Guru, then nothing else need be done. The Grace takes over from where the seeker has full faith in the teachings of the Guru.
However, many a seeker will not be satisfied with the above methodology. The ego being so heavily conditioned over the years, a lot of questions and doubts keep popping up in the mind. For such a seeker, self inquiry is the only way to sort out the false from the Truth. One can only know objectively the false. You can only know what you are not. The Truth is known only as an intuitive knowledge. Questioning "who am I" is not a mantra to be repeated endlessly. It is a process of elimination of the false- the elimination of what you are not! Once, all the false has been eliminated, the Truth is laid bare. It is like removing the contamination from cloudy water and immediately the reflection of your self is visible in the pure water. Once the mind has been cleared of all impurities (the false identifications and false concepts), the Truth/ Self shines in it spontaneously. Once the Knowledge is clearly apperceived, where is the need to go on investigating? Once the culprit is found, the police does not keep the investigation open, does it? You know you are a man or a woman. Do you keep repeating to yourself, " I am a man" or "I am a woman"? So, where is the question of repeating " I am the consciousness" to yourself? Such repetition is nothing but another form of mental conditioning. It defeats the whole purpose which is to destroy mental conditioning and mental concepts. Yes, an apparent process of continued self- investigation must be continued until firm conviction of the nature of the Self is established and the realization of one's True Nature is firm.
In the absence of any concepts, you ARE. Stay as you ARE.
Friday, January 28, 2011
God is the breath of all breath- Kabir
O servant, where dost thou seek Me?
Lo! I am beside thee.
I am neither in temple nor in mosque: I am neither in Kaaba nor
in Kailash:
Neither am I in rites and ceremonies, nor in Yoga and
renunciation.
If thou art a true seeker, thou shalt at once see Me: thou shalt
meet Me in a moment of time.
Kabîr says, "O Sadhu! God is the breath of all breath."
Kabir was a Saint and a weaver by occupation born in 1440 A.D. in medieval India. His poems are an expression of the simplicity of non-traditional Advaitic teachings. In this poem, he extols the simplicity of SEEING your True Nature. He emphasizes the fact that discovery of your True Nature is not in the acts of renunciation or yoga or some ritual or ceremony. For a true seeker, the Truth is at NO distance from your own self. There is no involvement of time in discovering your True Nature. True devotion is the hallmark of a true seeker.
Lo! I am beside thee.
I am neither in temple nor in mosque: I am neither in Kaaba nor
in Kailash:
Neither am I in rites and ceremonies, nor in Yoga and
renunciation.
If thou art a true seeker, thou shalt at once see Me: thou shalt
meet Me in a moment of time.
Kabîr says, "O Sadhu! God is the breath of all breath."
Kabir was a Saint and a weaver by occupation born in 1440 A.D. in medieval India. His poems are an expression of the simplicity of non-traditional Advaitic teachings. In this poem, he extols the simplicity of SEEING your True Nature. He emphasizes the fact that discovery of your True Nature is not in the acts of renunciation or yoga or some ritual or ceremony. For a true seeker, the Truth is at NO distance from your own self. There is no involvement of time in discovering your True Nature. True devotion is the hallmark of a true seeker.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Trapped in the Story
You have assumed an identity which keeps changing all the time. You are unable to say with certainty that this is who I really, really am. It is because, your own image of yourself has changed many many times over the course of your life so far. The body was given a name by your parents and thereafter, without any questioning, you accepted that you are a name with a form. As the body and mind kept changing, so did your image about yourself. A story was created in the mind, a story about a 'me' who is the body and has a mind. This 'me' has opinions about everything, is judgemental and has strong belief in its own existence as a separate and independent entity. Every action is done with the idea that it is this image which is doing the action.
In this story, which you call "the story of MY life", you have become trapped. The amusing thing is that this false entity which is nothing other than an image in a story, wants to become liberated. The entity in the story goes about pursuing spiritual discourses and rituals hoping to somehow become 'liberated' from this story. Despite all pretensions to the contrary, the main hero of this story (yes, 'you'!) knows very well that he/she cannot control the way the story is unfolding. Very frustrating indeed! Yet, there is a strong desire deep within to somehow escape from the misgivings, and the uncertainty, of the story. This 'me ' wishes that if only the story could follow the pattern desired by 'me', then there can be eternal joy and happiness. If only......, if only..... and so the endless thoughts and planning go on about how to make the story proceed as per your desires. In short, this is what is called 'suffering'!
So, what is the way out? The only way out is to step out of the story and see that the story is false. The Truth lies outside the story. And yet, the story runs or appears within the Truth. The story can play itself out only as an appearance in the Truth. The unreal cannot be without the support of the Reality. The Reality needs no support whatsoever. Every story has a beginning and an end. Reality has no beginning and no end.
By falsely identifying with the character (the 'me') in the story you have totally, totally forgotten that the Real you is the witness to the story. Have you ever given thought to this totally obvious fact? The fact that you are always AWARE of the story and the events in the story? So, how can you be the one in the story? WAKE UP TO THE OBVIOUS !!
In this story, which you call "the story of MY life", you have become trapped. The amusing thing is that this false entity which is nothing other than an image in a story, wants to become liberated. The entity in the story goes about pursuing spiritual discourses and rituals hoping to somehow become 'liberated' from this story. Despite all pretensions to the contrary, the main hero of this story (yes, 'you'!) knows very well that he/she cannot control the way the story is unfolding. Very frustrating indeed! Yet, there is a strong desire deep within to somehow escape from the misgivings, and the uncertainty, of the story. This 'me ' wishes that if only the story could follow the pattern desired by 'me', then there can be eternal joy and happiness. If only......, if only..... and so the endless thoughts and planning go on about how to make the story proceed as per your desires. In short, this is what is called 'suffering'!
So, what is the way out? The only way out is to step out of the story and see that the story is false. The Truth lies outside the story. And yet, the story runs or appears within the Truth. The story can play itself out only as an appearance in the Truth. The unreal cannot be without the support of the Reality. The Reality needs no support whatsoever. Every story has a beginning and an end. Reality has no beginning and no end.
By falsely identifying with the character (the 'me') in the story you have totally, totally forgotten that the Real you is the witness to the story. Have you ever given thought to this totally obvious fact? The fact that you are always AWARE of the story and the events in the story? So, how can you be the one in the story? WAKE UP TO THE OBVIOUS !!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Faith in the Guru
A seeker must have complete faith in the sayings and teachings of the Guru. The Guru may sound incomprehensible at times and the mind of the seeker may have doubts about the teachings. In fact, it is not uncommon for the Guru to contradict himself/herself quite often. This can create confusion in the mind of the seeker. But, realize that the Guru is trying to quell any doubts in the mind of the seeker from all angles. The Guru wants to ensure that the ego (seeker) has no chance of escape from the sword of the Guru. The seeker must not take the contradictions in the teachings as a sign of lack of knowledge on part of the Guru. The Guru, if addressing multiple seekers, has to present different types of pointers to the Truth to different seekers depending on their mental conditioning. Hence, the numerous pointers to the one and only Truth.
Having complete faith in the Guru is extremely essential to realize the Truth. In fact, complete and unconditional surrender to the Guru is absolutely a must for one to realize the Truth. On listening to the Guru, the most common error on part of the seeker is trying to conceptualize the teachings. On the other hand, when one surrenders completely to the Guru, all conceptualizing ends and the mind and the intellect having surrendered, the subtle intuitive powers take over and reveal the Truth. On listening to the Guru, one cannot intellectually comprehend the Truth. However, on surrendering one's mind and intellect at the feet of the Guru, something clicks at an intuitive level and suddenly the Truth, which was always present but not obvious, becomes obvious.
Remember, the words of the Guru are final. Have no doubt about that. The Guru is not an individual or an entity. The Guru is none other than your Self.
Having complete faith in the Guru is extremely essential to realize the Truth. In fact, complete and unconditional surrender to the Guru is absolutely a must for one to realize the Truth. On listening to the Guru, the most common error on part of the seeker is trying to conceptualize the teachings. On the other hand, when one surrenders completely to the Guru, all conceptualizing ends and the mind and the intellect having surrendered, the subtle intuitive powers take over and reveal the Truth. On listening to the Guru, one cannot intellectually comprehend the Truth. However, on surrendering one's mind and intellect at the feet of the Guru, something clicks at an intuitive level and suddenly the Truth, which was always present but not obvious, becomes obvious.
Remember, the words of the Guru are final. Have no doubt about that. The Guru is not an individual or an entity. The Guru is none other than your Self.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Look for Your Self
The Self is not out there. The Self cannot be known by reading books out there or listening to someone out there. The Self is right here- within. The Self is self shining and self effulgent and available right here and right now. Is it not obvious that you should look within to find your self? JUST LOOK FOR YOUR SELF.
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