The human form is ubiquitous on Earth. So many forms. So many forms of life. So many forms of inanimate matter. So many lifeless forms. It is said over and over again, human life is very rare. What is the real form of the human, what is it we aspire to as we cross the ocean of life, bhavasagaratharanam?
Glossary:
chitta: individual consciousness
vasana: tendencies or desires
leela: play, diversion; an act of divine playfulness, pure sport, the transcendental pastime of the Lord, especially the cosmic play of creation in which God plays all the roles, a drama undertaken at his own sweet will for no other reason than the disinterested joy of it.
chidatma: soul as embodiment of intellect and consciousness
anubhava San. m. perception; understanding; experience, feeling.
Atma-tattva reality of the Spirit; the primordial element; the consciousness that is the primeval element of existence;
Question 219: Sir, what are the attributes of a jiva who has non-dual cognition and is stabilised in the Self ?
Answer: Ramji, he who is established in the Self and cognises himself as distinct from the body and sees himself in everything, considers the entire world to be his elements and cognises it as his self. He is free from the illusions of birth and death. His consciousness (chitta) is the very form of Brahman (Brahmswaroop), free from all types of vasana, and he is said to be a wise one. A wise one considers the universe to be his sport (leela), he is in peace and is contented within because he has realised Atma truly through the spiritual discipline. He cognises the being of Brahman and has no faith in the being of the universe. Such a wise one is unattached even though he is apparently engaged in actions; therefore, his actions do not result in rebirth. Unattached to actions, he acts without fear.
Ramji, you are Brahman. Think of your true self so that you may attain tranquillity. When you are established in the true self, you attain Brahman. There is no distinction between you and Brahman; you must have this faith. The embodied soul (em>chidatma) is your true form and that, too, is the true form of the entire universe. Individuals with their tendencies and desires are but shadows in Atma; there is nothing else.
Ramji, ego is not independent of cognition or experience (anubhava), an individual is not independent of ego, the mind is not independent of the person, the senses are not independent of the mind, and the body is not independent of the senses. In reality, this entire complex does not exist. Brahman — that is your form — sports in this manner. Brahman – that is your form – is indivisible and unchangeable and it is established in itself. There is no other non-dual consciousness. A person of such faith is a person who has won liberation. Ramji, the universe is the reality of the Spirit only (atma-tattva), and nothing exists but an. Maintaining such faith, be you engaged in actions, but be free from joy and sorrow within, and knowing Atma as your true self, live with non-dual cognition.
Happiness is of three kinds. One type is of the nature of poison in the beginning but turns into nectar later. This happiness is secured through the awareness of the Atma; it is sathwic happiness. That is to say, the preliminary spiritual efforts of sama, dama etc., which has to be gone through, appears hard and unpleasant; it involves struggle and effort. So the reaction may be bitter. In the Yoga Vasishta, Sage Vasishta says, “O! Rama! The boundless ocean can be drunk dry by man with great ease. The enormous Sumeru mountain can be plucked from the face of the earth with great ease. The flames of a huge conflagration can be swallowed with great ease. But controlling the mind is far more difficult than all these.” Therefore, if one succeeds in overwhelming the mind, one achieves the awareness of the Atma. This success can result only when one undergoes many ordeals and denials. The bliss that one earns afterwards is the highest kind of happiness. As the fruition of all spiritual effort one is established in the perfect equanimity of unruffled consciousness (nirvikalpa samadhi) and the Ananda that fills him is indescribable. It is ambrosial, equal to the nectar of immortality. Nirvikalpa means the state of consciousness when it is devoid of thought. This state can be reached through appropriate spiritual effort. It is of two natures: non-dual in full experience and the state of non-duality when dual thought ends. The first takes man beyond the triune of Knower, the Known and Knowledge and he is aware only of the Cosmic Intelligence or Brahma (This is Adwaitha Bhavana). The second stage is reached when all the attributes ascribed to God and man merge in the ONE which embraces the Cosmos and all its contents (This is Adwaitha Sthayi or Adwaitha Avastha).
There is another type of happiness: on account of the impact of external objects on the senses of perception, pleasure mistaken as nectarine is aroused. But, in time, the pleasure turns into bitter and unpleasant poison. This is rajasic happiness. When man welcomes this rajasic sensory pleasure, his strength, awareness, intelligence and enthusiasm to reach the four goals of human endeavour known as Dharma (right action), Artha (wealth), Kama (right desire) and Moksha (Liberation), becomes weak, for his interest declines.
The third type of happiness is tamasic. It dulls the intellect from the beginning to the end. It finds satisfaction in sleep, slothfulness and faults and derives happiness therefrom. The tamasic person ignores the path that leads to the awareness of the Atma; he pays no attention to it throughout his life. Vidya Vahini, 40
Hamsa Gayatri
Om Hamsaaya Vidmahe
Paramahamsaya Dheemahi
Tanno Hamsa Prachodayat
“May we realise Hamsa that is our own Self as the Swan. Let us meditate on that Paramahamsa, the Supreme Self. May Hamsa illumine us.”
Image Credit: Pexels / Pixabay, Pexels / Pixabay