1. Who am I ?
The gross
body which is composed of the seven humours (dhatus), I am not; the five
cognitive sense organs, viz. the senses of hearing, touch, sight, taste, and
smell, which apprehend their respective objects, viz. sound, touch, colour,
taste, and odour, I am not; the five cognitive sense organs, viz. the organs of
speech, locomotion, grasping, excretion, and procreation, which have as their
respective functions speaking, moving, grasping, excreting, and enjoying, I am
not; the five vital airs, prana, etc., which perform respectively the five
functions of in-breathing, etc., I am not; even the mind which thinks, I am
not; the nescience too, which is endowed only with the residual impressions of
objects, and in which there are no objects and no functioning’s, I am not.
2. If I am none of these, then who am I?
After
negating all of the above-mentioned as ‘not this’, ‘not this’, that Awareness
which alone remains - that I am.
3. What is the nature of Awareness?
The
nature of Awareness is existence-consciousness-bliss
4. When will the realization of the Self be gained?
When the
world which is what-is-seen has been removed, there will be realization
of the Self which is the seer.
5. Will there not be realization of the Self even while
the world is there (taken as real)?
There
will not be.
6. Why?
The seer
and the object seen are like the rope and the snake. Just as the knowledge of
the rope which is the substrate will not arise unless the false knowledge of
the illusory serpent goes, so the realization of the Self which is the
substrate will not be gained unless the belief that the world is real is
removed.
7. When will the world which is the object seen be
removed?
When the
mind, which is the cause of all cognition’s and of all actions, becomes
quiescent, the world will disappear.
8. What is the nature of the mind?
What is
called ‘mind’ is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all thoughts
to arise. Apart from thoughts, there is no such thing as mind. Therefore,
thought is the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts, there is no independent
entity called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no
world. In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a
world also. Just as the spider emits the thread (of the web) out of itself and
again withdraws it into itself, likewise the mind projects the world out of
itself and again resolves it into itself. When the mind comes out of the Self,
the world appears. Therefore, when the world appears (to be real), the Self does
not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear. When
one persistently inquires into the nature of the mind, the mind will end
leaving the Self (as the residue). What is referred to as the Self is the
Atman. The mind always exists only in
dependence on something gross; it cannot stay alone. It
is the mind that is called the subtle body or the soul (jiva).
9. What is the path of inquiry for understanding the
nature of the mind?
That
which rises as ‘I’ in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in the
body the thought ‘I’ rises first, one would discover that it rises in the
heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin.
Even if
one thinks constantly ‘I’ ‘I’, one will be led to that place. Of all the
thoughts that arise in the mind, the ‘I’ thought is the first. It is only after
the rise of this that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of
the first personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear;
without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.
10. How will the mind become quiescent?
By the
inquiry ‘Who am I?’. The thought ‘who am I?’ will destroy all other thoughts,
and like the stick used for stirring the burning pyre, it will itself in the
end get destroyed. Then, there will arise Self-realization.
11. What is the means for constantly holding on to the
thought ‘Who am I?’
When
other thoughts arise, one should not pursue them, but should inquire: ‘To whom
do they arise?’ It does not matter how many thoughts arise. As each thought
arises, one should inquire with diligence, “To whom has this thought arisen?”.
The answer that would emerge would be “To me”. Thereupon if one inquires “Who
am I?”, the mind will go back to its source; and the thought that arose will
become quiescent. With repeated practice in this manner, the mind will develop
the skill to stay in its source. When the mind that is subtle goes out through
the brain and the sense organs, the gross names and forms appear; when it stays
in the heart, the names and forms disappear. Not letting the mind go out, but
retaining it in the Heart is what is called “inwardness” (antarmukha). Letting
the mind go out of the Heart is known as “externalisation” (bahir-mukha). Thus,
when the mind stays in the Heart, the ‘I’ which is the source of all thoughts
will go, and the Self which ever exists will shine. Whatever one does, one
should do without the egoity “I”. If one acts in that way, all will appear as
of the nature of Siva (God).
12. Are there no other means for making the mind
quiescent?
Other
than inquiry, there are no adequate means. If through other means it is sought
to control the mind, the mind will appear to be controlled, but will again go
forth. Through the control of breath also, the mind will become quiescent; but
it will be quiescent only so long as the breath remains controlled, and when
the breath resumes the mind also will again start moving and will wander as impelled
by residual impressions. The source is the same for both mind and breath.
Thought, indeed, is the nature of the mind. The thought “I” is the first
thought of the mind; and that is egoity. It is from that whence egoity
originates that breath also originates. Therefore, when the mind becomes
quiescent, the breath is controlled, and when the breath is controlled the mind
becomes quiescent. But in deep sleep, although the mind becomes quiescent, the
breath does not stop. This is because of the will of God, so that the body may
be preserved and other people may not be under the impression that it
is dead. In the state of waking and in
samadhi, when the mind becomes quiescent the breath is controlled. Breath is
the gross form of mind. Till the time of death, the mind keeps breath in the body;
and when the body dies the mind takes the breath along with it. Therefore, the
exercise of breath-control is only an aid for rendering the mind quiescent
(manonigraha); it will not destroy the mind (manonasa). Like the practice of
breath-control. meditation on the forms of God, repetition of mantras,
restriction on food, etc., are but aids for rendering the mind quiescent. Through
meditation on the forms of God and through repetition of mantras, the mind
becomes one pointed. The mind will always be wandering. Just as when a chain is
given to an elephant to hold in its trunk it will go along grasping the chain
and nothing else, so also when the mind is occupied with a name or form it will
grasp that alone. When the mind expands in the form of countless thoughts, each
thought becomes weak; but as thoughts get resolved the mind becomes one-pointed
and strong; for such a mind Self-inquiry will become easy. Of all the
restrictive rules, that relating to the taking of sattvic food in moderate
quantities is the best; by observing this rule, the sattvic quality of mind
will increase, and that will be helpful to Self-inquiry.
13. The residual impressions (thoughts) of objects appear
wending like the waves of an ocean. When will all of them get destroyed?
As the
meditation on the Self rises higher and higher, the thoughts will get
destroyed.
14. Is it possible for the residual impressions of
objects that come from beginningless time, as it were, to be resolved, and for
one to remain as the pure Self ?
Without
yielding to the doubt “Is it possible, or not?”, one should persistently hold
on to the meditation on the Self. Even if one be a great sinner, one should not
worry and weep “O! I am a sinner, how can I be saved?”; one should completely
renounce the thought “I am a sinner”; and concentrate keenly on meditation on
the Self; then, one would surely succeed. There are not two minds - one good
and the other evil; the mind is only one. It is the residual impressions that
are of two kinds - auspicious and inauspicious. When the mind is under the
influence of auspicious impressions it is called good; and when it is under the
influence of inauspicious impressions it is regarded as evil. The mind should
not be allowed to wander towards worldly objects and what concerns other people.
However bad other people may be, one should bear no hatred for them. Both
desire and hatred should be eschewed. All that one gives to others one gives to
one’s self. If this truth is understood who will not give to others? When one’s
self arises all arises; when one’s self becomes quiescent all becomes
quiescent. To the extent we behave with humility, to that extent there will result
good. If the mind is rendered quiescent, one may live anywhere.
15. How long
should inquiry be practised?
As long
as there are impressions of objects in the mind, so long the inquiry “Who am I?”
is required. As thoughts arise they should be destroyed then and there in the
very place of their origin, through inquiry. If one resorts to contemplation of
the Self unintermittently, until the Self is gained, that alone would do. As long as
there are enemies within the fortress, they will continue to sally forth; if
they are destroyed as they emerge, the fortress will fall into our hands.
16. What is the nature of the Self ?
What
exists in truth is the Self alone. The world, the individual soul, and God are
appearances in it. like silver in mother-of-pearl, these three appear at the
same time, and disappear at the same time. The Self is that where there is
absolutely no “I” thought. That is called “Silence”. The Self itself is the
world; the Self itself is “I”; the Self itself is God; all is Siva, the Self.
17. Is not everything the work of God?
Without
desire, resolve, or effort, the sun rises; and in its mere presence, the
sun-stone emits fire, the lotus blooms, water evaporates; people perform their
various functions and then rest. Just as in the presence of the magnet the
needle moves, it is by virtue of the mere presence of God that the souls
governed by the three (cosmic) functions or the fivefold divine activity
perform their actions and then rest, in accordance with their respective
karmas. God has no resolve; no karma attaches itself to Him. That is like
worldly actions not affecting the sun, or like the merits and demerits of the
other four elements not affecting all pervading space.
18. Of the devotees, who is the greatest?
He who
gives himself up to the Self that is God is the most excellent devotee. Giving
one’s self up to God means remaining constantly in the Self without giving room
for the rise of any thoughts other than that of the Self. Whatever burdens are
thrown on God, He bears them. Since the supreme power of God makes all things
move, why should we, without submitting ourselves to it, constantly worry ourselves
with thoughts as to what should be done and how, and what should not be done
and how not? We know that the train carries all loads, so after getting on it
why should we carry our small luggage on our head to our discomfort, instead of
putting it down in the train and feeling at ease?
19. What is non-attachment?
As
thoughts arise, destroying them utterly without any residue in the very place
of their origin is non-attachment. Just as the pearl-diver ties a stone to his
waist, sinks to the bottom of the sea and there takes the pearls, so each one
of us should be endowed with non-attachment, dive within oneself and obtain the
Self-Pearl.
20. Is it not possible for God and the Guru to effect the
release of a soul?
God and
the Guru will only show the way to release; they will not by themselves take
the soul to the state of release. In truth, God and the Guru are not different.
Just as the prey which has fallen into the jaws of a tiger has no escape, so
those who have come within the ambit of the Guru’s gracious look will be saved
by the Guru and will not get lost; yet, each one should by his own effort
pursue the path shown by God or Guru and gain release. One can know oneself
only with one’s own eye of knowledge, and not with somebody else’s. Does he who
is Rama require the help of a mirror to know that he is Rama?
21. Is it necessary for one who longs for release to
inquire into the nature of categories (tattvas) ?
Just as
one who wants to throw away garbage has no need to analyse it and see what it
is, so one who wants to know the Self has no need to count the number of
categories or inquire into their characteristics; what he has to do is to
reject altogether the categories that hide the Self. The world should be
considered like a dream.
22. Is there no difference between waking and dream?
Waking is
long and a dream short; other than this there is no difference. Just as waking
happenings seem real while awake. so do those in a dream while dreaming. In
dream the mind takes on another body. In both waking and dream states thoughts.
names and forms occur simultaneously.
23. Is it any use reading books for those who long for
release?
All the
texts say that in order to gain release one should render the mind quiescent;
therefore their conclusive teaching is that the mind should be rendered
quiescent; once this has been understood there is no need for endless reading.
In order to quieten the mind one has only to inquire within oneself what one’s
Self is; how could this search be done in books? One should know one’s Self with
one’s own eye of wisdom. The Self is within the five sheaths; but books are
outside them. Since the Self has to be inquired into by discarding the five sheaths,
it is futile to search for it in books. There will come a time when one will
have to forget all that one has learned.
24. What is happiness?
Happiness
is the very nature of the Self; happiness and the Self are not different. There
is no happiness in any object of the world. We imagine through our ignorance
that we derive happiness from objects. When the mind goes out, it experiences
misery. In truth, when its desires are fulfilled, it returns to its own place
and enjoys the happiness that is the Self. Similarly, in the states of sleep, samadhi
and fainting, and when the object desired is obtained or the object disliked is
removed, the mind becomes inward-turned, and enjoys pure Self-Happiness. Thus
the mind moves without rest alternately going out of the Self and returning to
it.
Under the
tree the shade is pleasant; out in the open the heat is scorching. A person who
has been going about in the sun feels cool when he reaches the shade. Someone
who keeps on going from the shade into the sun and then back into the shade is
a fool. A wise man stays permanently in the shade. Similarly, the mind of the
one who knows the truth does not leave Brahman. The mind of the ignorant, on
the contrary, revolves in the world, feeling miserable, and for a little time
returns to Brahman to experience happiness. In fact, what is called the world
is only thought. When the world disappears, i.e. when there is no thought, the
mind experiences happiness; and when the world
appears, it goes through misery.
25. What is wisdom-insight (jnana-drsti)?
Remaining
quiet is what is called wisdom-insight. To remain quiet is to resolve the mind
in the Self. Telepathy, knowing past, present and future happenings and
clairvoyance do not constitute wisdom-insight.
26. What is the relation between desirelessness and
wisdom?
Desirelessness
is wisdom. The two are not different; they are the same. Desirelessness is
refraining from turning the mind towards any object. Wisdom means the
appearance of no object. In other words, not seeking what is other than the
Self is detachment or desirelessness; not leaving the Self is wisdom.
27. What is the difference between inquiry and
meditation?
Inquiry
consists in retaining the mind in the Self. Meditation consists in thinking
that one’s self is Brahman, existence-consciousness-bliss.
28. What is release?
Inquiring
into the nature of one’s self that is in bondage, and realising one’s true
nature is release.
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