Prasanthi Vahini

The nature of Awareness is to reveal all objects. That nature of Awareness is the property of the Atman (all-pervading consciousness) only. The Sun and Fire can only reveal other objects but not the darkness that expands at night. It is because of the false reasoning of the experience (awareness) of these objects and the experience (awareness) of the darkness. But the awareness produced because of the Atman has no such distinction. It is favorable to all names, forms, and objects. It illumines all. Hence the statement about the nature of Atman: “Tam devaa jyotishaam jyotih” - The Gods acclaim the Paramatma as the Light of Lights. Its form is Jnaana, wisdom. But the physical body is not like that. The appearance of every physical body is ever-changing. But since the Atman shines equally everywhere and illumines everything without any distinction and it is of the nature of Ananda (Eternal Bliss) and of Chaitanya (Pure Consciousness), it becomes Brahman! This conviction is what is called as Jnaana.

Note this! He who sees a pot does not assume himself that he is the pot. Isn’t it? Similarly, when one considers the body as “This is my body” (meaning - body is distinct and different from me), how is it that one can identify oneself with the body just because he has attachment towards it? However, people are assuming so! They are identifying themselves with their physical forms. This is what is Mamakaara (attachment) and Ajnaana (ignorance). Jnaana, which is of the nature of the Atman, is indestructible. Ajnaana, which assigns physical bonding, is destructible.

The Atman is Formless. Hence, the Three-fold Affliction, the ‘_Taapatraya_’ does not affect It and cannot affect It. It is always in its non-dual reality and changeless nature at all times, and It is free from Shadbhava-vikaara (the six-fold mutations - birth, growth, change, old age, decay, and death). It is distinct from the guest-like body which It inhabits. The body is subjected to various illnesses arising from Vaata (subtle energy associated with movement), Pitta (energy of digestion or metabolism) and Shleshma (energy of lubrication and structure); growth; and decay. The Atman is free from all such mutations and disturbances. The Atman has no desires, impulses, or intentions. It is also beyond the Tamasika, Rajasika, and Saatvika qualities. That is why It becomes Kriya-shunya (state of non-doership). “_Prakriti kartri purushastu pushkara palashavannirlepah_”: The Prakriti (Nature) which consists of Gunas (qualities) is the Doer of all Kriyas (acts); the nature of Atman is as the lotus on the water, unaffected, unattached.

The Atman is known by the word, I, Aham; It is non-dualistic (without a second). The body is Drishya (perceptually objectifiable) and is perishable. It can never be Atman. However, everyone is identifying themselves with the body and considers it as the Doer! For such people, there can be no peace and no joy. It is only when the truth is understood and experienced that one can have Shanti.

The Viveka (discrimination) that distinguishes the Atman from this Drishya (perceptually objectifiable) world frees oneself from the bondage of Prakriti (Nature) and completely destroys the Avidya (ignorance) by treating it as an opponent. So, by cultivating unwavering discrimination, Avidya can be destroyed. By the proper practice of the Ashtanga, the Eight components of Yama (external discipline), Niyama (internal discipline), Aasana (postures), Pranayaama (breath control), Pratyaahaara (restraining the sense-organs), Dhaarana (concentration), Dhyaana (meditation), and Samaadhi (complete absorption), the impurities caused by the nature of Avidya can be cleansed. Then, the Buddhi (intellect) becomes pure and sharp and helps to realize the Atman. Ignorant people, who are not able to understand the true principle of Atman, delude themselves by the belief that they can derive joy from the objective world which their senses can experience. If only one inquires and reflects a little, it will be realized that everything is the same Atmaananda only and nothing else! All Ananda is Atmaananda and full of Amrita (Divine nectar).

But, when one can rest in the endless coolness of the actual Full Moon sailing in the sky, who will be content with the lifeless, painted moon and its painted light on a piece of canvas? Who will care even to cast a glance at it? As the saying goes, “Will anyone, who has the option of drinking sweet nectarous honey, opt to taste a bitter juice?”

So too, the Saadhaka who has tasted the nectar of Self-knowledge, the knowledge of the Atman, can never desire to taste, thereafter, the sensory joys of the objective world. The person engrossed in a painted moon can never know the real Moon and what it confers. So too, the Mudhamanava (ignorant man) deluded by the attraction of Prakriti (Nature), wallows in the unreal manifold world shaped by the three Gunas (Tamasika, Rajasika, and Saatvika qualities) and accepts it as real, and so, he cannot understand the true principle of Atma. On the other hand, the Vijnaani (learned man), who understood the reality, gives up the glittering falsehood of the ‘seen’ (perceptual) objective world and revels in the Atman, deriving Shanti therefrom.

So, never mistake the Drishya, the ‘perceptual’ objective world, to be permanent or true! You cannot exult in anything else except the Ocean of the Ananda of Indivisible, Undivided Atman, or Brahman. A true human being can get real and full contentment only in the meaningful experience of the Para-brahman Itself; only that can give solace from this sorrowful and painful Samsara (cycle of birth and death). These unreal things of the ‘perceptual’ objective world, the present moving world without ‘absolute existence’ and significance, can never yield real and full contentment to man. Nothing other than the Atman can ever, at any time, confer any benefit, or bring about any Shanti, or end sorrow and shower Ananda. Therefore, this unreal, uncertain sensual objects and joys of the world can never confer even an iota of benefit or give any Ananda or provide any proof of Shanti.

Asat (not self-existent) objects mean imagined or projected things, like silver in the nacre (mother-of-pearl) with no real silver one can take, water in the mirage with no real water to slake one’s thirst, etc. So too, when you base your life on the sensory objective world, which is Anatma (Non-self or other than Self) produced by ignorance or Avidya, you can never derive happiness or joy. Such pictorial products of fancy cannot appease hunger or slake thirst or satisfy desire. Only the real objects when acquired can produce those results.

So, too, the removal of the recurring sorrow of Samsara (birth-death cycle) can be effected only by the realization of Brahman. Genuine Shanti cannot be earned just by means of desires and intentions, study and scholarship, pomp and publicity. It must be experienced as such, however small an extent.

By mere force of intention, one can imagine in an instant a scene in America or London, but can it also be experienced in actuality, at that very instant? No. There is no use imagining and framing in the fancy. It must be experienced, in mind and word and body. Then only can one claim to have genuine Shanti. Therefore, merely thinking or imagining about Brahman or Shanti or Satyam or Sakshatkaram is of no use. Is there Ananda in such imaginations? No. You have to dedicate your life to win that Ananda and experience it and enter upon the discipline needed to acquire it. Then only do you deserve the Grace of the Lord and the attainment of Brahman; then only can you get the true Ananda.

Viveka Choodamani also taught about the above-mentioned subject in many ways. He who follows its teachings, without deviation, can taste its essence, the nectar of true Ananda. The goal of life is to experience such Ananda. Devoid of the sorrow that is inevitable in dealing with sensory objects, having no intentions and desires, one should partake the nectar of Brahmananda (Bliss of Brahman) and be immersed fully in true spirit in enjoying the Bliss of One’s Own Real Reality. Man alone, of all creation, has the qualification to achieve this Supreme Joy. What a sad tragedy that he, endowed with such amazing powers and capabilities, is falling prey to Maya (delusion) and forgetting the nectar of true Ananda, he is seeking false pleasures of this delusionary materialistic world! Sometimes children play with dolls, calling them elephants and horses; but, play does not make them real elephants and horses. Even that play itself is not factual. Similarly, ignorant and innocent men play in all seriousness, imagining the objects of this delusional world to be real. They incur many joys and sorrows, gains and losses. But that does not make the Maya Jagat (Illusory world) less unreal! They are as real as the joys and sorrows, sins and fears that you experience in the Swapnavastha (state of dreaming). All these worldly affairs are also fictional.

He who knows this secret will always exult in the Joy of Companionship with Oneself and the Contemplation of One’s Own Inner Reality, and experience Eternal Bliss.

Therefore, listen, all Saadhakas! You, whose real nature is Atmic! Seek to discover your true nature, your genuine Reality. Attain the realization that You are the Atman itself. Exult in the Atman alone. Experience the Eternal, Incomparable, Unlimited Bliss of the Awareness of the Real Self, and let Time merge in Him whose Form is Time. That is the primary task and bounden duty of Man. As taught in the Viveka Choodamani:

Jnaanaraksam samadrtya Jnaani sudrdhavanbhavet |
Saeva niratam svasmin svananda manubhunjate ||

Meaning, “With the amulet of Jnaana around his arm, one can move around without being caught by the evil influence of the vile stars called sensual attractions. Such a person is a Drdha Jnaani (Person of Resolute Wisdom).” But, one should not, out of the boldness born of the consciousness of Jnaana, give free vent to the senses. One should always be immersed in the contemplation of one’s own Inner Reality without giving any scope for the external world to find a way to enter into him. That is the sign of a perfect Jnaani. When one is ever in that state of one’s own Inner Reality of Para-Brahman, ever in that state of supreme Shanti, and observes Maunam (withdrawing oneself from communication through all the senses and meditating only on Brahman), the Self-illumining Truth, the Absolute Awareness of true knowledge or wisdom will ever be before the mind’s eye and conceal the projected objective world. Instead, if various objects and uncertainties are superimposed on that Undivided, Unlimited Brahman, it will be similar to projecting a city over the consciousness, which is your true nature. The Akaasha (Pure Consciousness), of course, is your true nature; but, for that reason, can it be possible for anyone to build castles in Akaasha? All these seem to be unreal, baseless creations of your own fancy. So too, in the _Akaasha_-like formless Para-Brahman, all this superimposed Drishya or the seen transitory world is Asatya (non-self-existent). It is one’s Chaitanya (Pure Consciousness) which is Non-dual, Blissful Para-Brahman that is all-pervading.

By always enjoying the Shanti that is attained as the result of restraining all Chitta-vrittis (mental tendencies, modifications), by keeping away the mind from the Drishya world and by observing Maunam, one can reach the state of one’s own Absolute Reality of Para-brahman which transcends all the sensory perceptions. That is the real Sakshatkaram (Realization), that is the Goal of Life.

“_Maunam bhajasva_” it is said. But what is Maunam? It means, getting beyond the influence of all the activities of all the senses and getting established always in the consciousness of one’s own Reality. Perpetual Ananda is also perpetual Shanti. Maunam is the Roopa (reflection or form) of Para-brahman, which makes the mind speechless, which goes beyond the cognizance of the mind and which desists from the activities of all the senses.

This stage cannot be described in words; it cannot be communicated to others as ‘such and such.’ It belongs only to the realm of experience. Maunam means “Sakalaatita Parabrahma Svaroopa” (the embodiment of the Supreme Absolute that is beyond everything). He who has reached it will be in the highest Shanti and the highest Ananda. At that time, if the activities of the Buddhi (intellect) are destroyed, and if the Buddhi is harbored in Brahman, one will become suffused with Para-brahman. One has to observe all this seen world from afar, with an uninterested attitude. Only such a person alone can overcome Prakriti (Nature) and become a noble one. The Buddhi (intellect), responsible for the impediments of knowledge like misconception of non-self, indecisiveness, and disorderliness, will now become peaceful and quiet. The nature of the Buddhi or the intellect, which is the root cause of everything, becomes pure and shines as Prajna (Pure Knowledge). So long as Buddhi is vicheshthita (wavering), the world appears manifold. When the Buddhi is motionless, Shanti envelops man, he is immersed in Tejas, splendor; he is in the Akhandapoorna Ananda (Undivided, Complete Bliss). This state is also called Nirvikalpa-maunam (eternally established in the Divine).

Therefore, may all Saadhakas, by their disciplined lives and ceaseless effort, establish themselves in the knowledge of their own Svarupa, their own Reality. May they keep their minds away from the Drishya world, contemplate always on the Paramatma, acquire peace of mind, withdraw from all contact with the sensory world, saturate themselves in Ananda, and know themselves as the One, without a Second. This is the Udasinabhavam, the stage of Disinterestedness, the condition of the person who has grasped the Paripoorna Jnana (Complete Awareness of Truth). There will never more be another; everything that is, is himself. The holy sages and philosophers, Suka, Sanaka, Sananda, and others too enjoyed the Bliss of this incomparable Maunam. Those who have attained this eternal status continue to remain in such Niramaya (pure and secure) state, for, they have no need for further thought or inquiry as Atma is Nirvikara, i.e., Unchangeable. This is what is referred to as Holy Maunam.

The quality of Paramashanti (Supreme Peace) is essential as it is the basis to achieve this Mahatattvam (Highest Truth or Realization). Any person or community who possesses this Viveka (discrimination) will never forgo this holy conviction and lead their lives accordingly.

The special characteristic of man among all created beings is his Viveka, his power of discrimination. He is therefore bound to act always, using his discriminating capacity. But, there are two opponents putting obstacles in his way: one, the idlers who are ignorant and prompt toward inaction, and two, the Teachers of Sankhya (A system of philosophy which inquires into the nature of material objects). The first set of people, the ignorant idlers, though they may desist from activity through their Karmendriyas (the organs of action), are unable to withdraw their minds and they continue to commit acts in their minds. So, their attempt to practice inactivity is Mithya (false or untrue).

The other set of people are, Sankhyans, whose main argument is, “Karma (action) causes both Punya and paapa, good and evil,” and so, they say, “the wise must give up all Karma.” In the Gita, Krishna refuted this argument and showed the way to get only the good out of Karma and avoid the evil. _Sankhyans_’ further argument is that if Karma is engaged in, the results are a mixture of pain and pleasure, of benefit and loss; and it leads the doer either to heaven or hell or back again to the earth, that is to say, to bondage of some sort, and does not give liberation. The Gita has a reply for this also. Karma will bring about bondage, only when it is engaged in with a view to the fruit thereof. When done without any thought of the fruit, it leads, on the other hand, to liberation, or Moksha, itself! Why, even liberated persons, engage in Karma, though they do not derive any benefit therefrom, just for promoting the welfare of the world! If the liberated persons do not engage in Karma, following them, the ignorant ones will be misled and spoiled. So, no one should renounce Karma, whoever it may be, be it a Mumuksha (Aspirant for liberation) or a Muktapurusha (Liberated person). Only by engaging in Karma, Shanti (peace), and Bhadrata (security) can be won.