Many people are not even aware what is soul; though knowing of it, many do not comprehend. Only few expound the knowledge of the soul,which is in the form of Consciousness and very rare assimilate and realize it. It is all because of their inherited physical conditioning.
When self is conditioned to think itself as body with the name the ignorance is born. Due to ignorance one has the conviction that he is an individual separate from the world and world existed prior to him and he is born in it later on. Until this conviction is there his reasoning faculty is based on the ego as self. Until ego is considered as self the experience of birth,life,death and the world is experienced as reality. If the birth,life,death and world is experienced as reality then the form,time and space is experienced as reality. If the form,time and space is experienced as reality than the universe will prevail as reality. If universe prevail as reality than the three states are experienced as reality. If the three states are experienced as reality than the duality will prevail as reality. If duality prevails as reality than the illusion will be accepted as reality. Thus there is a need for perfect understanding ‘what is reality’ and ‘what is illusion in order to assimilate non-dual truth.
There is a need to dismantle the inherited physical structure mentally to overcome the duality. The whole physical structure is built on the foundation of the ‘I’. Since they think the ‘I’ as self, it becomes difficult to grasp and assimilate and realize the non dual truth.
The ‘I’, appears and disappears as mind [waking/dream] is impermanent, hence it is not the self. The formless knower of the ‘I’ [waking/dream] is the true self. Since people think whatever is propagated by the guru/yogi as ultimate truth and blindly accept it as truth, without verifying the validity of their preaching. This blind acceptance becomes a big hindrance in pursuit of truth. If one is seeking truth, one has to verify the validity of any claim through inquiry, analysis and reasoning on the true base, and accept only un -contradictable truth.
Self-knowledge when taught by an unqualified person is not easily comprehended, because it is diversely regarded by disputants. But when it is taught by a Gnani , there can remain no more doubt about It. Consciousness is subtler than the subtlest and not to be known through argument.
Self- Knowledge cannot be attained if the reasoning is based on the ‘I’ [physical based]. the reasoning base has to be rectified mentally from form[I] to formless[Soul]. Consciousness becomes easy of comprehension, when one indulges in self-search. One has to attain self- Knowledge right now in this very life not in next world or next life.
Gnani, by means of concentration on the true Self, realizes that ancient, effulgent hidden and which dwells and pervades in everything and everywhere in all the three states as its formless substance and witness.
The knowing the true Self is not born; It does not die. It has not sprung from anything; nothing has sprung from It. Birthless, eternal, everlasting and ancient, it is not killed when the body is killed or when the world disappears. If the murderer thinks he kills and if the killed man thinks he is killed, neither of these apprehends aright. The Self kills not, nor is it killed.
Consciousness exists in smaller than the small, greater than the great and pervades in everything and everywhere in all the three states as their formless substance. A man who is free from viewing and judging the worldview on the base of ‘soul’ beholds the it through tranquility and becomes free from experiencing the duality as reality.
Gnani, having realized Consciousness as dwelling within impermanent states is bodiless, pervades the three states as its formless substance and witness and permanent and eternal.
Self-knowledge cannot be acquired by the study of the scriptures, or by intelligence, or by much hearing of sacred books. It is attained by him alone whom It chooses. To such a one Consciousness reveals its own form.
He who has not rectified his seeking base from the ‘I’[form] base to soul[formless] base , who does not have the intense urge to know the non-dual truth and who is not tranquil and subdued and whose mind is not receptive , cannot acquire Self-Knowledge . It is realized only through deeper self-search.
