beingatman

[beingatman]

शमं विषं विपणेति । रिपूणाहन्यते रिपुः ईदृशी भूतमायेयं या स्वनाशेन हर्षदा ॥ १११।। न लक्ष्यते स्वभावोऽस्या वीक्ष्यमाणैव नश्यति । वास्त्येषा परमार्थे नेत्येवं भावनयेद्धया ।। ११२ ।। One poison may be neutralised by another; an enemy may destroy another. Such is the wonderful riddle of elements that pleases through self-destruction! The real nature of this riddle is not perceived. As it is observed, it perishes - observed with the flaming imagination whose content is: 'in Truth it exists not at all'. --- Mahopanishad (V-111,112)

[beingatman]

Dream and Reality

Our imagination of different thing-  is temporary. So, that acts just as dream you see at night. And that imagination becomes reality for you as you are surrounded by that imagination, that concept- that idea.. how else the reality forms?

So, When you are living that dream, what you see in dreams feels just as real as reality. The actual reality i.e, your life doesn't make any sense there, as it is not there- not anywhere. Isn't it similar situation as dream?

State of dream is interwoven in state of reality and

State of reality is interwoven in state of dream.

The observer of dream like reality when asleep, enters into reality like dream and observer of reality like dream, enters into dream like reality.

The observer of reality like dream, calls the state of dream as a "Dream". And observer of dream like reality calls reality as a "Reality".

The reality feels real in the state of dream, so it isn't a dream but it is Reality!

Now in the world of imagination, the state of reality is just like a dream, so it is a dream! Never a Reality!

In vast reality, the dream appears for a few time. And in the state of dream, this vast reality appears for a few time!

The state of Dream and Reality is Never different from each other. They are Interwoven with each other. But when you look at them closely, with the eyes of wisdom, you'll see, that's not true! 

None of these holds the truth.

The appearance of Vast reality and fear of all this mundane existence, slowly disappears, and comes to an end once you get enlightened!

Even, it stays in the form of zero in the states of Dream and Deep Sleep!

In this span of time of Dream like Reality, the vision of afterlife doesn't exist. No components of another life appears in it. Nothing like heaven or hell is seen in Dream like Reality.

All three worlds seen in Dream are through this mind and

All theses worlds seen in reality are similarly through this mind only!

All lives and elements are unreal, but only appears as real.

In this way, If this whole world is just mirage of vision, then why to be stuck? What to fear?

If the world is, as how we see it, or be as different or be as nothing! 

What's the point of being stuck? 

There nothing to be deluded by.

Now you are aware about the reality.

Now why to be stubborn for futile meanings.

There are so many options now, you have to be relaxed from them. 

So...Stay in peace.

--- Yoga Vasistha.

[beingatman]

Look closely

"Look closely." That is the hint given in all upanishads and vedas. I think this works like an answer to all our doubts. How? Same has been explained perfectly in Yoga Vasishtha. Lord Rama asked Sage vasishtha: Sir, I know that all the sadness and miseries of this world are through this mind only, happiness is also through this mind. But how it all has been spread? Who created it? How to destroy ideas of sadness those are continuously getting birth in the womb of this mind? If everything is maya, then how to destroy it, get over it? Now answer is very deep, try to understand it fully, perhaps you'll find the rare Gem: Vasistha said: Rama, that's the magical nature of maya, didn't you see that? It doesn't even exist! Ideas of misery is a big folly, the thing that is not real. Let's make it more clear, There is a word "Vivarta", it means change of the object by observer's ignorance. If you see water in a mirage, you are aware that it doesn't exist, still your eyes makes fool of you, giving you false hope for quenching thrist. It is same like an imaginary ghost that child see at night.. it is just Vivarta! Imagination by mind, not real. Once awake, once got enlightened, no more ignorance at all. Look at the Moon at night, stare at it. Tilt your eyes a little by your fingers, you'll see two moons.. are they really two, or are they just tilting vision of your eyes? That's Vivarta. Change of shape by imagination of something that's real, harmless, unstained at first place. You too are real, harmless and unstained. That's your nature. But Vivarta makes you look different than your purified self, Vivarta is not real. Be aware.

'Deformation' is something that change shape of itself forever, it is permanent. But it is not in case of self. Purified Atman, at beginning of the time and purified Atman at end of the time. Whatever change happens here, is temporary only ... just Vivarta! Once awake, purified nature is identified quickly!

It's strange nature of maya isn't it? The thing that doesn't even exist! When you don't look at it, when you are not aware of it, it is covered to your existence all over like sticky miseries taking forms of duet of happiness and sadness. But when you look at it closely, you'll see that it doesn't exist! How to get rid of something that doesn't even exist? When you think like that, you'll feel ocean of Joy! True freedom. That's liberation while alive. Because this knowledge of reality, itself is giver of infinite Joy.

So stay calm, it says.

[beingatman]

Once there was a king and who had a queen, very wise. She attained all knowledge and attained peace of mind very early. She loved the king very deeply, so she desired to give this wisdom to the king. But king was unable to grasp it. He initially laughed at her, he wasn't being able to look at essence instead was satisfied with transient happiness. But queen was at peace. She had patience. She kept living this life with same contentment. As time passed, king started seeing the pain of this world. He started seeing the bitter taste of this life. The phase of sadness started affecting him deeply. So he decided to give up. Give up on his kingdom. He decided to go away, away from the sadness of this world, to live in a forest doing sacrifice of everything. He left alone. Queen wanted to stop him but then she realised, he won't listen. She knew that at proper time and place, the wisdom will surely  arrive in his blessed mind. So, she kept performing duties as a queen of the Kingdom alone. She was performing it very well, with calm, placid mind. So many years has passed. Nothing changed much. Queen thought of the king. She thought to go and find him. She left for forest, where she saw him, alone doing all sacrifices, looked like a mad sadhu. She had asht-siddhis (Eight Spiritual Powers). So she changed form (one of the spiritual power), being aware about the fact that if he had seen her in her own form, he won't listen to the wisdom. She took the form of a young enlightened kid named Kumbha. The king saw kumbha. He became very happy. After a long time he saw enlightened one in this lonely forest. Kumbha was looking bright. Kumbha asked the purpose of king for doing sacrifice. King said, he left his kingdom in hope to achieve peace of mind. But still he was unable to do so. King asked what is the way to be free from all the miseries. Now next conversation is interesting. Kumbha said give up on what is yours, that is the only way to be free from all ignorance and pain. King said, "I have already left my kingdom, that's why I'm here, all alone! What else you want me to leave?" Kumbha said, "How can you say that the kingdom was yours? It wasn't!. Give up on the thing that you are holding from so long! By giving up on it, there is nothing left to leave" King said, "Oh yes, are you talking about this forest? Okay then. I'm leaving this place, now" Kumbha said, "Forest wasn't yours at first place, give up on something that is covered to your existence like impurities covered to the purified gold, by giving up on that thing, there's nothing left to leave"

King started crying said, "This rudrakhsh (holy stone) is my own, I have never left it to this day.. I am leaving it now" Kumbha said calmly "It wasn't yours, leave something that you have.. then you won't need anything else to leave" "Please let me know, What are you talking about, I have left everything, I have nothing with me now, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to sacrifice this body and die?" Said king, crying. Kumbha said, "who said, this body is yours? Look closely.. what is the thing you are holding too tightly?" "I am begging you.. please tell me, I am living here from so many years, restless... Giving this body too much pain.. please bless me with absolute bliss.. I want to know what do I need to do to achieve eternal peace of mind.."

"I am talking about this Ahankara (ego)... That you have kept with you. Just give up on it. I am giving pain to this body, I am doing this to achieve this, I want eternal bliss, I want this... NO!. Just give up on this 'I'. Why are you giving pain to this body? What is your purpose of living hermit life in this forest? Don't do it any more. Peace is always within. Look closely giving up on all the illusions. When eyes are covered with tears, you won't be able to see the face in mirror clearly. Clean your eyes, clean your soul.", Said Kumbha. Now, after such conversations king achieved peace of mind. At last kumbha asked king, "Now what you are going to do?" King said, " I don't know.. I am at peace right now, it appears as eternal. What else is there to be done? You tell me, what should I do?" Kumbha said, "Why don't you go and perform your actions as the king? It is there as an action without any doer as doer is free from within. Let it happen." King went back to his kingdom and performed his duties very wisely. (Story is based on Nirvana Sarga of Yoga Vasishtha) ------------------ I like this story very much as this is one of the story I've read in which there is wisdom of freedom from fear of certain actions. As they don't affect you. As you are free. Don't be worried by actions and don't be stubborn to "not doing so". As both are able to entangle you, bind you. You better be free.. it says.

[beingatman]

Yoga and Meditation brings Focus on particular thing you wished for. It is only useful for that purpose. And without focus, mind keeps wandering in different subjects and so, person is unable to achieve desired thing and falls off from all the subjects that he/she was wandering to. If person has faith and focus on only desired thing, he/she surely achieves what is desired. No one can reach to northern direction while heading towards southern direction. When person loose the focus on desired thing, and starts wandering about other things, he/she looses both the things as he/she was not faithful to any particular thing at any point.

Yoga Vasishtha

[beingatman]

Yoga Vasishtha on Desires.

Vasishta said, "I see how appearance of the human body resembles the vision of a fairyland in a dream. I also see the miseries awaiting human life in this world. Now tell me, my lord. How is all this misery to be removed from the world?" The lord Shiva replied:— All human sorrow is the result of desires and belief in the reality of the world. The entire world must be known to be as unreal as the waves of water seen in a mirage. For what good or use is desire? Why should a dreaming man be deluded to drink the show of water in the mirage? The viewer of truth, freed from his views of personal ego and objective reality, who has abandoned deluded and delusive thoughts and in the utter absence of all worldly thoughts from his mind, truly beholds the true existence of God in his presence. Where there is no desirer or desire or the desired object, but only the thought of the one unity, all error and misery are an end. He whose mind is free of the true and false imaginary demons of common and imaginary error and is settled in the thought of one unity alone, sees nothing but the unity before him. Desires of the mind arise like demons in the midway sky. Thoughts of the world wander about the sphere of the mind like numerous worlds revolving in the sky. Hence there is no peace of the soul unless these desires and thought subside. --- Nirvana Sarga 41. Desires here, are explained as a quivering nature of mind. The appearance of sorrow when mind is not at rest. Well, you yourself dig deeper and find the gem, the real gem..

[beingatman]

A Story from Yoga Vasishtha.

There were three Asuras without any greed or ego, named Dam, Vyala and Kata. Once devas and those asuras had a war. Devas couldn’t win. Deva went to Brahma. Asked, what to do? Brahma told to devas ..you can’t win because they have nothing to loose now. The person who has nothing to loose is the hardest to win against. Dont desire to win against asura until they become greedy. All you have to do is wait. So in all brutal wars, deva did nothing to win They spent some days in talks, some days waving white flag, some days running away, some days living in secret locations. During all those time, asura had gained firm conception on greed and ‘I’ sense in their body. That initially didn’t exist. It happened because they were keep winning the war. If they didn’t make firm conception on 'I’ sense on their body, they wouldn’t have became greedy. Then they started thinking like, if we become immortal, it would be great, if we get more money it would be great etc. Only because of such hopes, they were in reality becoming poor. And desire entered and mixed with their actions. Then they were getting bound by these hopes. Initially they were pure but just like an image of snake enters in rope, imagination of 'I’ sense in all subjects entered in them Slowly their patience has gone. Their strength due to imaginary desires has weakened. Their “focus” on war has disappeared. The fear of death arose in their minds. “What if we die… What if we die…” They started shouting. They became slow in war action. What else to say? They started to run away from the war field. And vanished to the deepest part of Hell.

They found girls for them. “She is mine.. she is mine..” they cried. The strong and pure asura has became poor and greedy now. They spent years in fire of hell. They left their body there. In next life they became men, then they became crows, then they became eagles, then they became parrots then they became pigs then they became sheeps. after that they became ants. After getting thousands of births and rebirths, at present they are living in Kashmir. In small pond. As small fishes. They keep drinking water of the small pond to survive. They aren’t at peace till now. Just because of their false desires. How strange it is! Where the strong and mighty… The destroyers of devas.. and where the poor surfing fishes in a small dirty pond.

— From Yoga Vasishtha.

[beingatman]

Gold becomes impure from its inner alloy and not by its outward soil. So a man becomes unholy by the impurity of heart and foulness of his mind, and not on account of outward subjects.

Yoga Vasishtha

[beingatman]

Misery exists as long as you haven't identified the atman in self. After knowing atman, there's eternal peace. Immortal atman is mixed inside this mortal body. Pick it up ! Only Goldsmith can distinguish between gold and ashes in mixture. Same way only knowledge can help you to find atman in self. ---- Extract from Yoga Vasishtha.

[beingatman]

Sattva

There are born in the world: People who are highly pleased in the world and are as happy on their faces as the face of the sky with the serene light of moonbeams. Their faces are not darkened by melancholy but are as bright as the face of heaven. They are never exposed to troubles, like lotus flowers are exposed to night frost. They never deviate from their even nature, but remain unmoved like immovable bodies. They persist in their course of beneficence, like trees yielding their fruit to all. Rama, they get liberation in the same manner as the disc of the moon receives its ambrosial beams. They never forsakes mildness, even when in trouble. They remain as cool as the moon even in her eclipse. They shines with the lovely virtue of fellow-feeling to all. Blessed are the righteous who are always even tempered, gentle and as handsome as forest trees beset by vines with clusters of blossoms. They keep in their bounds, just as the sea remains within its boundaries, and they are meek with their even tempers, like yourself. Extract from Yoga Vasishtha

[beingatman]

Beyond

Time

Space

[beingatman]

Yoga Vasistha on Maya

I have said this much about words and terminology because it is impossible to penetrate the deep darkness of ignorance without the means of much talk.

As conscious ignorance offers itself a willing sacrifice on the shrine of knowledge, it bids its adversary, the destroyer of error, to take possession of its seat in the bosom of man.

One weapon is foiled by another, one dart is removed by the other, one poison is destroyed by another, and one foe is driven out by another enemy.

So Rama, the mutual destruction of errors brings joy to the self. It is hard to detect the error, but no sooner it is found out than it is destroyed.

Ignorance obscures the keenness of our insights and presents the false and gross world before us. We all view this wonderful universe, but we do not know what or how it is.

Unobserved, it rushes to our view, but being examined with attention and keen observation, it fades away.

We know it is a phantasm, and yet find it appearing with dimensions and forms before us.

O the wonderful enchantment that has spread out this world and made unreality appear as a sober reality to the knowledge of everyone of us.

This earth is a distinct, widely extended superstructure resting on the indistinct surface of an unknown foundation. He is the best of beings who has stretched this enchantment. When you are enlightened with the thought that all this is non-existent in reality, you will become the knower of the knowable and understand the meaning of my lectures.

So long as you are not awakened to true knowledge, trust my words.

All this immensity that appears to sight is only the picture of your mistaken thought. It is all unsubstantial, only a mere manifestation of your deluded mind.

( Sthiti ; Sarga 41)

[beingatman]

Yoga Vasishtha on Meditation.

Is meditation the ultimate answer ? Can we get eternal joy by meditation practice?

Meditation is a way of getting back to yourself, a way of dissolving chaos of mind into emptiness.

But, It is hard to maintain meditation beyond form when the sight of the visible world is present before our mind.

Your external awareness destroys the fruit of meditation.

Just like, Nothing is visible when you are in deep sleep but once you are awake, you begins to see the world full of all its sorrows and imperfections opening your eyes wide. What you feel and fear then is entirely based on your impressions and conceptions before you fallen asleep.

Now, Whenever thoughts come in contact with any outward thing, one finds ‘reality’ inseparable from imperfect existence.

If anybody forcibly withdraw his attention from outward things and, for a while, fix his sight on a stone and say, “I am in deep meditation”, afterwards he/she is sure to be carried away again by all illusions pressing upon his sight.

Even steady meditation that has attained the fixedness of a rock cannot advance one step towards the attainment of that tranquility which has no limit.

What is use of such meditation that brings you to misery once again?

It is a foolishness to think that all visible things can be suppressed by practicing prayers and austerities and similar acts.

The idea of the outward illusory thing is not outside.. it is not in front of your senses as different thing.

It is in the Mind. Just like the seeds of the lotus flower are contained in its inner cells.

The ideal of the phenomenal world lies hidden in the mind.

Extract from Yoga Vasishtha.

[beingatman]

You have suffered what you had to suffer, and faced everything.

Now why you are becoming greedy towards life and death?

Now, leave everything that binds you. Leave attachments towards different illusory subjects.

May you reach to heaven as per your deeds. May you get fame amongst the people and may you get praised by them.

But never ever fall in the pit of subjects those are illusory.

Only those people are known as alive whose light is spread vast amongst the earth and whose songs are being sung. Others are long, forgotten killed by death even while living.

Stay focused in efforts. There’s no chance of failure if you are focused in efforts.

Don’t be impatient. The sweetness of fruit on a tree is a result of patience.

Don’t let sadness, fear, ego or hurry affect you.

You have been through much, Your body has suffered so much pain through your senses towards illusory subjects. Now do efforts to recover it from that pain and get over the misery.

Don’t be driven by false desires. Use your intellect to see truth. There is no use of keeping hope in something that is wrong, something illusory that doesn’t exist. Leave that false hope. Leave that false desire. Even, don’t desire to follow those fallen people like an animal.

Wake up.

Don’t stay idle like a turtle sitting miserably in a dry pond.

Keep doing good efforts.

– Extract from Yoga Vasistha

[beingatman]

Towards reality

"Objects seen in a dream prove to be false on being awaken. Similarly, belief in the reality of the body becomes unfounded upon dissolution of our desires. As our physical bodies awake after dreaming and desiring, so our spiritual bodies awake after we cease to think of our physical states. In deep sleep we are devoid of desires. Similarly, in the state of renunciation, even though we are awake in our physical bodies, we have the tranquility of liberation. The desire of men liberated while living (jivan mukta) is not properly any desire at all. It is a pure desire relating to universal wellbeing and happiness." ---Goddess Sarasvati to Leela (Yoga Vasishtha)

[beingatman]

About Purusartha and Prarabdha

“When afflicted by suffering people cry “Alas, what tragedy” or “Alas, look at my fate”, both of which mean the same thing. What is called fate or divine will is nothing other than the action or self-effort of the past. The present is infinitely more potent than the past. They indeed are fools who are satisfied with the fruits of their past effort (which they regard as divine will) and do not engage themselves in self-effort now.”

— Yoga Vasishtha.

Just a kind reminder.:-)

[beingatman]

  अतिबाह्यं तथा बाह्यमन्तराभ्यन्तरं धियः। शुक पश्यन्न पश्येस्त्वं साक्षी सम्पूर्णकेवलः ॥ ७३॥ (O Suka) You see external and beyond what is external as well as internal and  beyond what is internal - You see but you do not see; Because you are the sole and perfect onlooker (un-involved). --- Mahopanishad II.73