There are certain
principles which are common to all orthodox Hindu thought, that are taken for
granted. Orthodox assumes that the
doctrine of karma is valid because they accept the experience of birth, life,
death and the world as reality.
Kabir views humanity as being caught up in illusion, searching for Ultimate
Reality in all the wrong places, always seeking It outside of ourselves in
various rituals, temples, forests and mountaintops, not realizing That for
which we seek is already hidden within us.
Without the Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana it is
impossible to cross the illusory ocean of the pain and pleasure. There no vessel to ferry man across the ocean
of illusory form, time and space except Gnana.
What is Gnana? Gnana means the full and firm realization of
truth – a realization beyond all doubts, change and contradiction.
Neither the control of breath, or regulating the breath, nor the
performance of selfless service, nor by devotion to gods and gurus, not the
performance of penance, nor pilgrimaging, nor by yoga nor by scriptural
mastery, the ignorance will not vanish. But only through non-dual wisdom the ignorance can be
eradicated. The three states are state
of ignorance. All the three states are falsehood. The formless substance and
witness of the three states is real and eternal.
Sri Sankara, in Bhaja Govindam says: - [Jnana Viheena Sarva Mathena Bajathi na Muktim janma Shatena]
- one without knowledge does not obtain liberation
even in a hundred births, no matter which religious faith he follows.
The mind is in the form of Universe. Universe appears as waking
or dream. Waking as it presents itself is unreal, same way as the dream. Thus
waking or dream is simply illusion created out of consciousness. To the man within the universe it is not an
illusion because he has the conviction that he is an individual separate form
the universe and he is born in this universe and universe existed prior to
him. Until this conviction is there he
is bound to believe the birth, life, death and universe as reality. Only in deeper self-search he becomes aware of
the fact that, the mind is not within the body but body and the universe are
within the mind. And he also becomes aware of the fact that
mind itself is the whole universe ,which appears as waking or dream and
disappears as deep sleep.
To think once own body and his
experience of the world is an illusion is difficult matter, unless one realizes
the self is not physical but it is formless soul it is difficult to have
glimpse of truth.
When one realizes the fact that, the
self is not physical but the formless soul, naturally the body and universe
becomes illusion.
The mind (universe) is emanating from
soul (consciousness) means the mind is being effect from consciousness is not
different from it. Deeper analysis shows it. Analysis needs deeper thinking and
reasoning. Mind is whole universe thus it has a form. But where is the form in
consciousness (soul) because consciousness is like an ocean and mind is like
wave. The universe is same
consciousness, as the ocean produces the wave, so the consciousness produces
the mind (universe).
The moment one knows the mind (universe) is consciousness, and then there is no ignorance. If one knows
consciousness as self then everything is consciousness, the consciousness is
second to none. The mind is
consciousness but due to ignorance one mistakes it for something else. One
thinks the self is within the body; but the self is without the body and the
world.
Mind ceases to exist without the matter. Without the matter mind ceases to exist as mind but it exists as matter- less awareness or consciousness. Without the mind neither the world nor its perceiver can exist.
Without the matter there is no
duality. Without duality there is no experience. Without experience it is non-dual
reality. Therefore, whatever prevails without the mind is ultimate reality.
The true nature of the soul (consciousness) is camouflaged by
the illusion/duality. To know the truth
one has to discover and realize the formless substance of the mind or illusion.
One has to learn to view and judge the worldview on the standpoint the formless
soul as self.
Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is the prime goal of the truth seeker. This goal is hidden within the mind as its invisible substance and witness. Therefore, it is necessary inquiry, analyze and reason in to the nature of mind( duality/illusion) in order to unfold the mystery of mind or duality or illusion.
Self-Knowledge or Brahma Gnana or Atma Gnana is the prime goal of the truth seeker. This goal is hidden within the mind as its invisible substance and witness. Therefore, it is necessary inquiry, analyze and reason in to the nature of mind( duality/illusion) in order to unfold the mystery of mind or duality or illusion.
The validity of the judgements which one continually pass on
events taking place around him is not denied but all these experiences are
happening within the universe (waking or dream) is mere illusion. It is true
that the phenomenal world is the outcome of ignorance, but it has a certain
relative reality but the relative reality is mere illusion from ultimate
standpoint. Thus the relative reality is
based on the false self within the false experience because there is no second
thing exist other than consciousness thus there is only non-dual reality.
The universe is real for him who has not attained to the
knowledge of the self. Just as the entire complex of phenomenal existence in
the dream is considered to be true until waking arises. Similarly, the entire complex of phenomenal
existence of the waking experience is considered as true so long as the non-dual
wisdom has not arisen.
The worship and worshiper
and the deity are part of the ignorance. In the state of ignorance blind
beliefs and exercises are popular. They are meaningless and valueless on the
ultimate standpoint. The truth is no individualized god. If one believes there is creator than worshiping the creation
is ignorance. Thus there is a need to know what truth, in order to know what
God really is.
The worshiper of God as personal really does worship God bur
worships ignorance. And he who speaks of personal God as creator of the world speaks
is unaware of the truth.
The organized religions are based on the belief, because blind
belief is foundation of the organized region.
The religious theories are lower knowledge meant for those who are incapable
of going in to deeper self-search.
The religious truth is individual truth. The individual truth is
based on the birth, life, death and the world.
Thus individual truth is lower know-ledge based on the false self within
the false experience.
The ultimate truth is based on soul, which is the inner most
self. Whatever is based on the soul as self is real knowledge or wisdom.
The religious philosophy seems to be true, for those who have
not attained the higher knowledge, but from the ultimate standpoint point the
universe is mere illusion. Thus all our accumulated knowledge based on
religious philosophy is bound to be falsehood.
The birth, life and death takes place within the universe. The man is bound by religion and its theories within the universe. Man believes and worships of a personal God within the universe. Man experiences the plain and pleasure within the universe. All scientific inventions take place within the universe. Man is religious or atheist within the universe. Man is ignorant of his true existence within the universe. Man is searching the truth of his true existence within the universe. Man is unaware of the fact that, the phenomenal universe is unreal because he is within the state of ignorance.
The idea of the creator
and creation is a myth. All (universe) is consciousness, and consciousness is all (universe). The consciousness is
ultimate truth.
Self is ‘I’- less. Self is bodiless. Whatever is connected to
‘I’ or ‘I AM’ is ignorance. When ignorance ends it is Gnana. When Gnana arise
than the body, ego and the universe is mere mirage created out of
consciousness. Until one gets the firm conviction that the
self is not physical but self is formless consciousness and learns to view and
judge and conclude on the base of formless self, Gnana will not arise. Gnana is the result of contemplation; it in
annihilates ignorance. Ignorance is the cause of experiencing the illusion as
reality.
Ignorance is cause of the illusion. When the self becomes aware of it formless non-dual true nature then the ignorance vanishes and reality
appears. When the reality appears than the universe is mere illusion created
out of the consciousness, which is the inner most self.
Chandogya
Upanishad
"When
a person is sleeping soundly, free from dreams, with a still mind, that is the
Self, fearless and deathless. That is Brahman, the supreme."
One has to find answers for: - What is that becomes waking? What
is it that becomes dream? What is that becomes deep sleep. As one goes in deeper self-search he becomes
aware of the fact that the consciousness alone is the cause of the three states
and it itself is uncaused. Until one thinks the self is limited to an
individual and it is within the heart he will never be able to come out of
physicality. The self is not an individual because it pervades in all the three
states and it is formless substance and witness of the here states. The individual experiences of birth, life,
death and the world are nothing to do with the self because the self is birth
-less and deathless. The form, time and
space are nothing to do with the self, because it is formless, timeless and
space less existence. Thus judging the
truth on the bases of form, time and space is erroneous. Thus ‘I’ or ‘I AM’, which is limited to
physicality, will yield only half truth.
That is why Sri, Sankara
says in Viveka Chudamani:-
63. Without
causing the objective universe to vanish and without knowing the truth of the
Self, how is one to achieve Liberation by the mere utterance of the word
Brahman ? — It would result merely in an effort of speech.
65. As a treasure
hidden underground requires (for its extraction) competent instruction,
excavation, the removal of stones and other such things lying above it and
(finally) grasping, but never comes out by being (merely) called out by name,
so the transparent Truth of the self, which is hidden by Maya and its effects,
is to be attained through the instructions of a knower of Brahman, followed by
reflection, meditation and so forth, but not through perverted arguments.
The
individual experience within the dream is reality with in the dream. Therefore
waking reality is also is reality within the waking. This waking is parallel
dream and dream is parallel waking. Only when self-wakes up in waking the dream
becomes unreal. When the self-consciously wakes up in its formless non-dual true
nature in the midst of waking experience
then all the three states are
mere mirage created out of its formless non-dual true nature.
The form
time and space within the dream are falsehood when waking takes place.
Similarly the form, time and space of the waking are also falsehood when wisdom
dawns. The wisdom dawns only when one realize the self is neither the waking
entity nor the dream entity. Thus it is erroneous to judge and reason and
conclude the ultimate truth on the base of waking entity and waking world
because waking experience itself is illusion.
Suppose
you were holding the same view in the dream, all your experiences and views are
reality within the dream. The dream becomes unreal when waking takes place.
Similarly the waking becomes unreal when you become aware the fact that, the
self is not an individual. Thus whatever
individual experiences experienced within the waking is as unreal as dream.
Until one thinks body as body and world as
world it is impossible to grasp nondual truth, because his views and judgments
are bases on physical self with the physical existence. The individuality is reality with the waking
experience but the waking experience itself is false hood. Thus holding the
view as an individual within the false experience is erroneous on the ultimate
point of view. The waking is parallel
dream and dream is parallel waking experience.
In waking the universe comes: in deep sleep the waking goes. In waking is one born; in waking one dies.
In waking one lives, in Waking one suffers. In Waking one earns,
in Waking one enjoys. In Waking is one truthful or lies like a liar. In Waking
one reflects on Virtue and Sin. In Waking do one lands in Heaven and Hell. In
Waking is one happy, in Waking in sorrow. In Waking does one lose the
distinctions of caste and creed. In Waking is one wise; in Waking is one
unwise.
In Waking one has an urge to know the truth. In Waking one is in
the illusion; in Waking is one shadowed by Doubts and confusion, in waking one
thinks of reincarnation and rebirth. In
waking one thinks that he is born in this world and world existed prior to him.
In waking one is in ignorance of the true self, which is consciousness. If one
spots out the true self within the three states, one realizes the way to
freedom.
One is in action in Waking. In Waking one is bound by form, time
and space. Waking is in the form of mind. Mind appears and disappears as waking
or dream. If there is no mind then there
is no waking or dream. Waking or dream is born out of ignorance of the true
self. Getting rid of the ignorance through wisdom is the way to the release. In Waking or dream,
one follows the Writ of habit. Waking or dream is a chronic malady; but within
it also is its remedy.
The true Self is not perceptible to the senses. It is perceived
by Reason. It is not perceptible as a thing with form and attributes. To those
whose attention is fixed on the body and the world, it is very difficult to
attain Self-knowledge. It is also very difficult for them to see the
consciousness as self. The attention towards the universe [mind] should be
lessened by realizing the self is not the body. The attention has to be focused
on the formless substance and witness of the universe [mind] should be
increased. So long as the attention is directed towards the universe, the
experience of birth, life and death will prevail as reality. But when the
attention is directed towards the formless substance and witness of the mind,
the ignorance vanishes and the sense of reality of the duality will disappear.
Then there is unity in diversity.
This subject is vast and
it has to be grasped only through deeper self-search.