SWAMI, CHRIST, BUDDHA AND NON-DUALITY

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this reason that the great Seers and Sages declared, “Yato Vacha Nivarthanthe

Aprapya Manasa Saha.” Meaning, it is beyond the mind to comprehend the

infinite. For such is the nature of Brahman (or God), and such is the

limitation of the rational mind. Spirituality is thus, purely subjective.

“Everything else can be objectified, as it belongs to the domain of Maya (or

illusion),” Swami says, “but not the eternal subject - the Atman (the Self).”

“Love My Uncertainty” – What is its Significance? No one, no matter

how many years he has lived with Swami or watched Him at close quarters, can

predict Swami’s actions with certainty. One can never understand what He does

when and why He does it. Whatever it is, His ‘uncertainty’ surely takes us

beyond the concept of cause and effect. Through logic and reason, we establish

and link the cause with effects. This helps us to predict with some certainty,

our samsara (or worldly life) of relative existence, and the process of

rationally living a comfortable and a successful

life. When we investigate “Swami’s Uncertainty”, we find that the cause is not

necessarily linked to the effect. This “delinking” has the prime purpose of

taking the mind beyond reliance on its own little reason, thought and

intellect. Gradual delinking of thoughts which relate to worldly life and

duality thus leads to detachment. “Thy Will be done, not mine”, as Christ

said. The “Uncertainty” around Swami therefore serves a great purpose in the

devotee’s progress towards surrender. Rationality and intellectual processes,

which were an impediment, fall away. “Love My Uncertainty” leads the devotee

towards the final goal of Atma Nivedanam (total surrender), provided he is able

to put it into practise sincerely. Touchstones for Progress The seeker

progresses because he: stops looking for causes and their effects, stops

being cerebral, stops weighing pros and cons, stops being judgmental. “Judge

not lest ye be judged” as Christ said. He transcends the dual world of cause

and consequences. Intuition which fulfils reason, yet transcends it,

predominates. The Light of Lights The word “God” or Brahman is synonymous with

“light”, however this light is figurative and not the light which is perceived

by the senses which is the opposite of darkness. Describing

this light, the scriptures say - “That because of which the sun shines” “That

because of which the eyes see.” “That shining everything else shines!”

It is this transcendent concept of light which the ancient seers declared

saying – “There the sun cannot illumine, nor the moon, what to speak of this

mortal fire”. Constant Integrated Awareness Once Sri Ramakrishna asked

the boy Narendra (Swami Vivekananda), "If you were a fly and there was a pot

overflowing with nectar, how would you drink it?" Narendra replied, “Why? I

would sit on the edge of the opening and slowly sip bit by bit and enjoy it to

my heart’s content.” To this Sri Ramakrishna replied - “You are a fool! You

should dive deep into the pot and become one with the nectar!” This is true

Advaitha or

non-dualism. It is here that the person who experiences, the act of experiencing

and the object of experience become One. This is the state which often Swami

refers to as “Constant Integrated Awareness”. Who Is A True Atheist? While

speaking on atheism, Swami Vivekananda at one place says – “A true atheist is

one, who not only denies God, but also the world.” Isn’t this an eye-opener on

Reality? It is mind-blowing, in its starkness and import and worth contemplating

upon. Pseudo atheism has no place here. Denial of the Creator, God, but

acceptance of the Creation (world) as real, can at best be termed pseudo

atheism and a materialistic concept. To make it clearer, let’s take the case of

Buddha. The Case of The Buddha Buddhism is claimed by many to be an

atheistic religion. This is because Buddha did not preach about any personal

god, but always spoke of Nirvana (salvation) and rising above the world of

senses and dualities. Swami has spoken on the Buddha several times during the

Buddha Poornima celebrations. The Buddha elaborated thus: “Sarvam Dukham,

Sarvam Kshanikam, Sarvam Anathmam, Nirvana Shantham” Meaning, “Everything is

sorrowful, everything is temporary, everything is unsubstantial or illusory,

salvation alone is peace.” Buddha thus advocated the path of Gyana Marga (or

the Path of Wisdom). It was therefore not atheistic, which is a misnomer.

Buddha shows that Tyaga (Sacrifice) is the only way to immortality which Swami

has emphasized on umpteen occasions. Continuing the Buddha story, the Buddha

did not encourage idol worship. But after his death, Buddha was adored as a God

and fully accepted by the Hindu fold. In fact He is counted among the 10 Avatars

- incarnations of the Supreme Lord - according to Hindu mythology. It is

suggestive that the majority of the masses were not yet ready to imbibe his

non-dualistic (or Advaitic) teachings. Hinduism accepted Buddhism as an

off-shoot of Hinduism.

Christ and Non-Duality Christ’s statements on non-dualistic wisdom are

numerous. For example, Jesus said, “I and my Father are One.” This is the, in

fact, the ultimate state of realization, the Advaitha Darshan – the vision of

non-duality. From the Messenger of God, to the Son of God, graduating finally

to Oneness with God – these, Swami says, depict the stages of the 3 schools of

Vedantic philosophy, namely, Dualism (Dwaita), Qualified Non-Dualism (Visistha

Advaitha) and Pure Non-Dualism (Shuddha Advaitha). This is the ascent that

every individual has to undergo, irrespective of what religious denomination he

may belong to. Christ’s expression - “Be ye Perfect, even as your Father in

heaven is Perfect” relates to the realization of this Oneness. It again

signifies the path of wisdom.Let us conclude with a very apt aphorism of Swami:

The End of Wisdom is Freedom! The End of Culture is Perfection! The End of

Knowledge is Love! - Sri S Suresh Rao andThe Heart2Heart Team (Sharing With

Sai Love) Ram.Chugani Ram

ChuganiKobe, Japanrgcjp

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