In the deepest core of our being, we all are Atman itself.
Our real source is Atman.
Since we have construed ourselves to be physical body and mind, we are having our life, full of problems; We are having our life, full of sorrow and sufferings.
We feel that we are bound by our physical body and mind. It is a fact that our body and mind are limited. Our body has birth and death. Our mind has sorrows and
sufferings.
There is no wonder, we are affected by the ailments of our body and the sufferings of our mind, as long as we take ourselves to be the physical body and mind.
Am I going to state that Athmic consciousness is necessary ?
Atman alone is important ; Atman alone is real – am I trying to convince you repeatedly , to accept it you yourself ?
It looks like that.
But I am not trying to derive it so.
It is true that all my explanation are nothing but giving importance to Atman.
Even though it looks like that, really, my intention is quite opposite.
Actually I am trying to remove the unnecessary importance , given toAtman . My real stand is, we should not give importance to Atman ; We should not give importance to pure witnessing ; — to koodastha ; We should not give importance to the soul – the spirit.
We will see the details in due course.
Now we are in a position to think about the supremacy and the greatness of Atman. So we have to consider it alone for the time being.
Since we take ourselves as a physical body, we have to face the ailments of the body.
Since we take ourselves as the mind, we have to face all the problems, created by our mind.
When we discover that we ourselves are pure Atman , all our problems — whether it is of the mind or it is of the body , wither away from us.
Because Atman is bounded , neither by the physical body nor by the mind. So neither the ailments of the body nor the problems of the mind, would reach the Atman.
Atman is neither drenched by water nor burnt by fire.
It is never born ; It will never die . It is always pure , complete and perfect. — It is described like this.
So, by knowing ourselves to be Atman, all our problems come to an end.
You may know the great Enlightened saint Ramana Maharishi.
Many devotees asked him about their doubts. They request solution for their various problems. Ramana Maharishi says confirmly :
“Our doubts will never be cleared; our problems will never be solved , — unless and until we attain ‘ Athma Satchathkaram’ , the self realization. As we have taken
ourselves to be the physical body and mind , we are having all the doubts and all the problems . I am not the body ; I am not the mind . I am the basic source of everything .
I am the Atman . when we have ‘Athma Satchathkaram or self Realization’, all our doubts and conflicts will be over”.
Ramana explains about the misconception that we have mistakenly taken the body and mind as ourselves. Self realization is the only remedy ; ‘Athma Satchathkaram’ is the only remedy.
The devotee wants clarification. “ What is meant by “ Athma Satchathkaram”?
Can we know it in ‘ Prathyatcha Bhava’ ? Can we know the presence of Atman as we know the presence of the wordly things ? ”
‘ Prathyatcha Bhava ’ means knowing the presence of everything through the sense organs of our body. Or it may be considered as a similar kind of knowing the
presence — if not sensed by the sense organs.
Does ‘ Athma Satchathkaram ’ mean knowing Atman in our feeling level? Does it mean a direct knowing or experience?
If we see our friend on the way, we can recognize him as our friend. Even though we have felt him through our sense organs of our physical body, we recognize him only through our mind. We understand him only through our mind.
In the same way, can the ‘Athma Satchathkar’ also be visualized by our feeling and by the intelligence of our mind ? But ‘Prathyatcham ’ means that. It means such a kind of knowing.
Does ‘Athma Satchathkar’ mean the knowing by ‘Prathyatcha Bhava’ ?
If we use the word ‘Athma Satchathkar’ it really means knowing by ‘ Prathyatcha Bhava.’ So the clarification, sought by the devotee is very reasonable.
Even Ramana Maharishi himself does agree with the reasoning of the devotee.
So, Ramana Maharishi used to explain every thing in the name of ‘Athma Satchathkar’. Athma Satchathkar is the only answer, given by him, for all the questions, raised
by his devotees.
“What is ‘Naistiga brahmacharya’ — celibacy ?” — a devotee asked.
“Athma Satchathkar is the real Brahmacharya – real celibacy” — Ramana replies him that everything is ‘Athma satchathkar.’
When the devotee wants clarification as to whether we can have ‘Athma satchathkar’ by ‘Prathyatcha Bhava’? — Ramana begins to reconsider his approach.
Then he abruptly changes his stand.
Now he explains differently.
“The removal of ignorance is Athma Satchathkar. Athma Satchathkar and Athma darshan are mere words without any meaning. Disappearance of ignorance is important. Disappearance of ignorance alone can be called as Athma satchathkar.”
At first , he says it in a positive way, as if, we can have the direct vision of Atman itself . Then, he has changed his approach. Now, he says in a negative way. The removal
of ignorance alone, is important. Ramana Maharishi is not an ordinary Gnani. He is an
Enlightened master. He is a Brahma Gnani . He always aims at absolute Truth. So, we can consider his words, as of scriptures.
Here, we also have to change the direction of our investigation.
Now, the question before us is: Whether we have to attain Athma satchathkar ? Or whether we have to remove our ignorance ?
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