Swami teaches...Outlook below the mind and beyond the mind

[Guest guest]

Sai Ram

 

Light and Love

Swami teaches... 20 - 26 September 2005

 

Outlook Below the Mind and Beyond the Mind

Motto: The Jnaani says, "Sarvam Brahma mayam" (God is All); another, a

Yogi, says all is Energy; a third, who is a Bhaktha says all is the play of

Bhagavaan. Each according to his taste and according to his progress in

spiritual saadhana. Do not blame or ridicule them, for they are all pilgrims

trudging along the same road. Sathya Sai Baba

The world attracts in innumerable ways. Either in speculation or in

exploration, human being cannot go beyond the Universe. Whatever knowledge one

acquires, however much one develops the powers of understanding, knowledge is

confined to things of this world and does not go beyond it. One can know about

the objects in creation, but cannot understand the Supreme Principle that is at

the base of all creation.

Physics is concerned with the physical properties of material objects.

Chemistry teaches the composition and qualities of created things. Botany deals

with plants and trees found in nature. Zoology is concerned with the study of

living beings and etc. The knowledge that is gathered by the analysis of

physical objects or through the senses is one aspects of the mind. However,

human being does not know what is own future, what is in store the next

moment.

Individuals are prepared to engage themselves in various activities for the

sake of their own personal comfort and for the acquisition of wealth and

position and for ensuring the good of their kith and kin. But few of them are

prepared to make any efforts or sacrifice for the general good of society.

It is known from ancient times that good conduct and character are the most

essential requisites for a human. They are the basis for the spiritual life. If

the spiritual aspect is neglected, one becomes an artificial, mechanical being

with no genuine human quality. Spirituality reveals the basic principle that is

immanent in everything and sustains the entire Cosmos.

Huge amount people today lack a broad-minded Universal outlook. All actions

done by human today are intended to satisfy the mind. They are too much

self-centred and, like frogs in a well, are preoccupied only with their narrow

selfish interests.

The primary cause for the chaos of divisions, conflicts, disorder and

violence in the world today is the absence of the sense of oneness among

people. You must realise the unity that underlies the apparent diversity. All

the myriad forms you see are reflections in a mirror of your own image. All

the sadhanas you do are of little use for realising the Atma. They may help to

tranquilise the mind. But what you have to do is to eliminate the thought

process of the mind altogether. Only those sadhanas which aim at eliminating

the mind will be of use in the Atmic quest.

Some people resort to meditation in the belief that there is some power

greater than themselves which they must experience. People also undertake

arduous exercises to realise some secret, mysterious and marvellous power other

than themselves. This is action born of ignorance. There is nothing higher in

the world than yourself. But belief in the existence of such a power is a

creation of your mind. There is nothing in the world separate from you. For all

worldly things there is a Kartha (a creator), Karma (causal action) and Kriya

(the end product). In the sphere of the spiritual, however, there is only the

Kartha (Creator). The Atmic principle, which represents the unity of all these

three, is the One that pervades the entire Cosmos. It is the Universal

(Cosmic)consciousness.

It is this Cosmic Consciousness that has been presented to the common people

as Sat-Chit- Ananda so that they can comprehend its nature. The Vedantins looked

upon these three as reflections of each other. These three have also been called

Asthi, Bhaati and Priyam in Vedantic parlance. In fact, all three are one and

the same. The Atma (Spirit) has no form. It is capable of assuming the form of

the container which it fills.

When you want to understand the nature of consciousness, you have to

understand one part of it, namely, Conscience. Conscience is a Witness. It is

also known as Awareness. A witness requires a basis for itsfunctioning. That

basis is that of which you are "conscious" in the waking state. There are these

three levels of understanding. Being "conscious" (of the objective world), the

Conscience and the Consciousness. The first state is related to the senses.

Conscience is related to the mind. Consciousness is related to the Atma (the

Spirit).

If you seek to know where is the Atma, it is the Chaitanya (Consciousness)

between one state of consciousness and another. There is a state which is

between waking and sleep. The yogis have observed this phenomenon. That which

is conscious between the waking and sleeping states is the Atmic principle. The

waking state represents the Rajo guna. Sleep represents the Tamo guna. In

between is the Satwa guna - that is the Atmic Consciousness.

"I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all things," declares Krishna

in the Bhagavad Gita. All that you see in the cosmos - the moving and

stationary objects - is a manifestation of the Atma. In the spiritual realm,

what you hear at every step is the Atma. What is seen is Atma. What is heard is

Atma. What makes you forget is also Atma. Krishna declared to Arjuna: "In

this Universe there is anything that is not Atma." The Atma is one and the

same in everybody, distinctions are made among different persons on the basis

of their physical and other characteristics and their relationships.

In reality, all efforts made for experiencing Atmic bliss are aberrations of

the mind. Seeking liberation human adores a myriad deities. Of what avail is all

this, when all the different religions have declared that there is only One God.

 

What human needs today is to take the resolve to realise the Atma. It is

Atma-jnana (Knowledge of the Self). The first aim of human existence should be

to experience Atma-Ananda (Atmic Bliss). This Atma is called Eruka (Awareness).

This Awareness produces in every being the sense of "I-ness." "I" that the

whole process of creation began. If there is no "I," there is no creation. The

terms, "I", Atma and Brahmam are all synonymous. How can you discover your

source or your true Self by searching for it elsewhere (than within you)?

To know your own Self, why do you need any assistance?

 

The "I" not associated with the mind is Atma. The "I" associated with the

mind is mithyaatma (pseudo-self).

As long as the mind exists, desires will persist. When desires are present,

attachments and possessiveness cannot be got rid of. When you examine the

activities of the mind, with a view to finding out whether they are leading you

to bondage or to liberation, you will find that they are only leading you to

bondage.

All that human does - seeing, hearing, experiencing and doing - are all

mental delusions caused by association with the body. The mind is dependent on

the body. The mind experiences all that relates to the world made up of Pancha

Bhutas (the five elements) through the sense organs. The mind sees the world

through the eyes, hears through the ears and so on... If you look at things

below the mind, you perceive the phenomenal world. All knowledge and

experiences are associated with the mind externally.

/Five types of Dharma (duties) have been laid down for human. One is Kula

Dharma (duties relating to his occupational group). The second is Dhesha Dharma

(duty to the nation). The third is Matha Dharma (duties pertaining to his

religion). The fourth is Gana Dharma (duties relating to society). The fifth is

Aapath Dharma (the duty when he faces danger). All these five types of duties

are related to one's life in the phenomenal world and are not concerned with the

Atma. All these duties have penalties for their violation. They should be

considered as essential corrective measures conducive to one's good/.

In the Gita has declared that the Cosmos is a combination of the Kshetra

and Kshetrajna (the Field and the Knower of the Field). True knowledge consists

in the awareness of the relationship between Kshetra and Kshetrajna. The

human body, which is called Kshetra, is a reflection of Prakriti (Nature). All

the conscious and inert objects in the Cosmos are immanent in the human body.

The Cosmos itself is a reflection of the human's inner Being.

It is not enough to recognise the role of the body, the senses, the mind and

the intellect. There is within the body the Kshetrajna, the Indwelling Knower,

who oversees these agencies. If you understand the Kshetrajna (knower) in the

kshetra, there will be no need to enquire about the kshetra (the body, etc). If

you look beyond the mind, you recognise the Atma.

To know the Kshetrajna you have to acquire Jnana (the Supreme Knowledge).

This transcends every other kind of knowledge, which is related to the physical

and the phenomenal. Atma and Jnana are principally one, though called by

different names. Jnana which is known when the senses are brought under

control by the mind, the mind itself ceases to function. It disappears as it

were. Then human experiences a profound silence. That stillness resulting from

the absence of the mind is true Knowledge. This knowledge cannot be acquired by

intellectual ability or mental agility. Nor can it be acquired by following an

example. It is not something new to be got. It is like the ashes which cover a

burning charcoal or like the moss which covers a sheet of water. The ashes have

come from the charcoal. The moss has originated from the water.

Atma Jnana (Knowledge of the Self) is not obtainable through books. Nor can

preceptors impart it. It is not even given by the Paramatma (the Supreme Self).

You are yourself the Paramatma, the Jnana, the Atma. How does this Atma exist

in all beings? How is this Jnana present in everyone? When you meditate on this

in solitude, a permanent, unchanging sound arises from the mind. In all human

beings there is one unchanging and indivisible Divine entity (the Inner Voice).

The body undergoes change from infancy to old age, but the Inner Voice

remains unchanged. The Inner Voice has no change in the gross or subtle states

of the body. It is the divine Inner Voice issuing from the Atma-tatwa (Atma

Principle) what cannot be realised through scholarship or dialectics. However

great a pandit might be, he would not be able to see an object if he is blind.

Even a great scholar proficient in all the scriptures will not able to see

objects of the phenomenal world in his dream state. But the human that is

awake, whether a scholar or not, can see the objects in the world. In the same

manner, the Atmasakthi (the power of the Spirit) which cannot be readily

recognised, will be evident to one who has attained Atmic knowledge through

purity of the mind.

The aspirant who seeks to experience the Atma will not be able to have it by

performing worldly actions. Irrespective of whether there is a body or not,

whether there is a mind or not, the Atma is present. To realise the Atma,

physical prowess is of no avail. It is only by developing the sense of

spiritual oneness that the Atmic Consciousness can be realised. There is no

need for a body or mind to experience the Divine. But till this is properly

understood, good care has to be taken of the body, the senses, the mind and the

intellect.

 

There is no difference between Bhakti (devotion) and Jnana (knowledge of the

Spirit).

There were two brothers, Jnaanadheva and Bhakthidheva. Both were going on a

journey. On the way, they felt thirsty. Bhakthidheva asked Jnaanadheva, "I am

thirsty but I cannot see water anywhere." Jnaanadheva said: "Let us see whether

there is any well nearby." After going some distance, they noticed an old well

with water deep at the bottom. Jnaanadheva declared: that through wisdom

anything can be accomplished. He immediately assumed the form of a bird, flew

down to the water in the well, quenched his thirst and came up. Jnaanadheva had

the ability to assume any form because of the supreme knowledge of the

Self.Bhakthidheva could not get down into the well. He sat near the well and

prayed to God with intense love. After sometime, the water in the well rose to

the level of his feet. Noting the wetness of his feet, he opened his eyes and

saw that the water in the well had overflowed. Jnaana requires a change in

one's form. Bhakthi needs no such change. Intense loving devotion will suffice.

What the devotee needs will come running to him. There is nothing greater than

devotion. Through loving devotion, the Lord can be made captive. Devotional

Love is itself God.

Devotion is easier than Jnaana maarga (the path of Knowledge). Through

devotion, constant chanting of the name and loving remembrance of God, anything

can be accomplished. When you love God with all your heart, the bliss you

experience is unexcelled. This was the experience of the Gopikas. This has been

described as the fifth Purushaartha, the experience of union with God - Supreme

devotion. Among the nine forms of devotion, the foremost is the cultivation

of the sakhya (friendship) of God. Friendship is followed by total surrender to

the Divine. The human of faith need not worry about who will take care of him

if he devotes all his time to thoughts of the Divine. The Lord who is the

universal provider will take care of his devotees. This faith in the Lord was

emphatically proclaimed by Purandharadhaasa in his songs.

When you develop the feeling of spiritual oneness of all beings, you become

one with the Divine.Do not consider God as distant from you. Do not also

entertain the crazy notion that if you worship Him, He will appear before you.

Offer yourself to Him and in a moment you will experience Him within you.

(Reet's compilation from, Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 17. "Devotion without

discipline is valueless," Chapter 4; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 23. "Know

thyself," Chapter 19 and "Kshetra and Kshetrajna," Chapter 20; Sathya Sai

Speaks. Vol. 26. "The Divine and destiny," Chapter 26; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol.

29. "Jnaana and Bhakthi," Chapter 37 and "The power that draws devotees,"

Chapter 41).

 

Namaste - Reet