D.: What is the purpose of Self-realization?
B.: Self-realization is the final goal and is itself the purpose.
D.: I mean, what use is it?
B.: Why do you ask about Self-realization? Why don't you rest content with your present state? It is evident that you are discontented and your discontent will come to an end if you realize yourself.1
The above question was seldom asked, because those who came to the Maharshi usually understood at least that the state of spiritual ignorance (or, as Christianity puts it, of ‘fallen man’) is undesirable and that Self-realization is the supreme goal. In the following dialogue the purpose is asked with more understanding and therefore the answer also goes deeper.
D.: What is the goal of this process?
B.: Realizing the Real.
D.: What is the nature of Reality?
B.: (a) Existence without beginning or end—eternal.
(b) Existence everywhere, endless—infinite.
(c) Existence underlying all forms, all changes, all forces, all matter and all spirit.
The many change and pass away, whereas the One always endures.
(d) The one displaces the triads such as knower, knowledge and known. The triads are only appearances in time and space, whereas the Reality lies beyond and behind them. They are like a mirage over the Reality. They are the result of delusion.
D.: If ‘I’ am also an illusion, who casts off the illusion?
B.: The ‘I’ casts off the illusion of ‘I’ and yet remains ‘I’. Such is the paradox of Self-realization. The Realized do not see any contradiction in it.2
It is surprising how many philosophers and theologians have failed to understand what is implied by Self-realization and have misrepresented and even attacked or belittled it. All that it means, as Bhagavan explains in the passage just quoted, is realizing Reality, realizing what is. And Reality remains the same, eternal and unchanging, whether one realizes it or not. One can, of course, understand the annoyance and frustration of philosophers who wish to grasp everything with the mind at being told that Reality lies beyond and behind the triad of knower-knowledge-known, which is like a mirage over it; for obviously the mirage cannot penetrate to that which underlies it. That is why no easy answer can be given to them. Indeed, Bhagavan did not on the whole approve of questions about the meaning and nature of Realization, because his purpose was to help the questioner and not to satisfy mental curiosity. He usually reminded people that what is needed is effort to attain Self-knowledge; and when that is attained the questions will not arise.
‘Some people who come here don't ask me about themselves but about the Jivanmukta, liberated while still embodied. Does he see the world? Is he subject to destiny? Can one be liberated only after leaving the body or while yet alive? Should the body of a Sage resolve itself into light or disappear from sight in a miraculous way? Can one who leaves a corpse behind at death be liberated? Their questions are endless. Why worry about all these things? Does Liberation consist in knowing the answer to these questions? So, I tell them, “Never mind about Liberation. First find out whether there is such a thing as bondage. Examine yourself first.”’3
He sometimes pointed out that even to speak of Self-realization is a delusion—an illusory escape from an illusory prison.
B.: In a sense, speaking of Self-realization is a delusion. It is only because people have been under the delusion that the non-Self is the Self and the unreal the Real that they have to be weaned out of it by the other delusion called Self-realization; because actually the Self always is the Self and there is no such thing as realizing it. Who is to realize what, and how, when all that exists is the Self and nothing but the Self?4
One thing that impedes understanding, especially in theologians, is the contrast between Self-realization and sainthood and the mistaken idea that it may represent a difference between different religious traditions, one striving for sainthood and another for Realization. This idea is quite ungrounded. There have been saints in every religion, Hinduism as well as others. They differ very much among themselves, both in individual characteristics, from the rapturous to the serene, from the austere to the benign, from the subtle philosopher to the simple-minded, and also in degree of attainment; some of them possess supernatural powers, some are swept away in ecstatic bliss, some consume themselves in loving service to mankind; all have a purity beyond that of ordinary men. Their state may be called heavenly even while on earth. And yet all this falls short of Self-realization. All this is in the state of duality, where God or Self is the Other, where prayer is necessary, and revelation possible. In strict theory they are as far removed as the ordinary man from Self-realization, since there is no common measure between the Absolute and the conditioned, the Infinite and the limited. A million is no nearer to Infinity than a hundred. This complete gulf is illustrated by the Buddhist story of the man who wanders about the earth seeking for a lost jewel, which all the time is on his brow. When at last it is pointed out to him, all his years of search and wandering have done nothing to bring him nearer to it. And yet, in actual fact, if he had not gone searching, he would not have found it. And in actual fact the saint can be considered nearer to Realization than ordinary men, just as it is easier for an ordinary man to attain Realization than for a dog, although both alike are limited to the illusion of individual being.
There are stages of attainment of the saints, just as there is a hierarchy of heavens; and both of these correspond to the degrees of initiation in indirect spiritual paths. Bhagavan would answer questions about this when specifically asked, but did not usually speak of it, since his purpose was not to raise his followers from grade to grade of apparent reality but to direct them towards the one, eternal, universal Reality.
D.: Do we go to Svarga (heaven) as a result of our actions here?
B.: Heaven is as real as your present life. But if we ask who we are and discover the Self, what need is there to think of heaven?5
D.: Is Vaikunta (heaven) in the Supreme Self?
B.: Where is the Supreme Self or heaven unless in you.
D.: But heaven may appear to one involuntarily.
B.: Does this world appear voluntarily?6
Similarly he would briefly acknowledge grades of development in the individual but would not dwell on them.
‘The yogic centres, counting from the bottom upwards, are a series of centres in the nervous system, each having its own kind of power or knowledge.’7
When someone told him about a present-day saint who was said to be constantly inspired by an Incarnation of God and to speak only as divinely directed, and asked him whether this was true or not, Bhagavan replied:
‘As true as all this that you see around you.’
For, as compared with the Self, neither this physical world nor any higher world is inherently real, just as, compared with infinity, a big number has no more meaning than a small one.
A saint may attain a lofty grade without ever conceiving of the ultimate Reality of Oneness or having only brief ecstatic intimations of it. That does not matter; the power of his purity and aspiration will eventually sweep him onwards either in this life or beyond.
For one who envisages the ultimate Goal and strives towards it there are no stages; either he is realized or he is not. About this Bhagavan spoke willingly and explicitly, because this was the path he enjoined.
‘There are no stages in Realization or Mukti. There are no degrees of Liberation.’8
D.: There must be stage after stage of progress before attaining the Absolute. Are there different levels of Reality?
B.: There are no levels of Reality; there are only levels of experience for the individual, not of Reality. If anything can be gained which was not there before, it can also be lost, whereas the Absolute is eternal, here and now.9
However, although there are no stages of Self-realization there are what might be called pre-views, glimpses, which are not yet stabilized or made permanent. Sometimes, indeed, these occur to people who, in this lifetime, have had no spiritual training at all. As the opacity of the aspirant's ego lessens with training in abnegation he becomes more liable to them. Even great mystic philosophers, such as Plotinus or Meister Eckhart have, by their own admission, been dependent on them, not having attained to the permanent state of identity from which Bhagavan taught.
‘Can a man become a high official merely by seeing one? He may become one if he strives and equips himself for the position. Similarly, can the ego, which is in bondage as the mind, become the Divine Self simply because it has once glimpsed that it is the Self? Is this not impossible without the destruction of the mind? Can a beggar become a king by merely visiting a king and declaring himself one?’10
D.: Can Self-realization be lost again after once being attained?
B.: Realization takes time to steady itself. The Self is certainly within the direct experience of everyone but not in the way people imagine. One can only say that it is as it is. Just as incantations or other devices can prevent fire from burning a man when otherwise it would do so, so vasanas (inherent tendencies impelling one to desire one thing and to shun another) can veil the Self when otherwise it would be apparent. Owing to the fluctuations of the vasanas, Realization takes time to steady itself. Spasmodic Realization is not enough to prevent re-birth, but it cannot become permanent as long as there are vasanas. In the presence of a great master, vasanas cease to be active and the mind becomes still so that samadhi (absorption in Realization) results, just as in the presence of various devices fire does not burn. Thus the disciple gains true knowledge and right experience in the presence of a master. But if this is to be established, further effort is necessary. Then he will know it to be his real Being and thus be liberated while still living.11
Some armchair critics have claimed that the quest of Self-realization is arrogant or presumptuous or does not involve the humility and self-effacement of sainthood. If, instead of theorizing, they undertook the eradication of the vasanas, which are the roots of the ego, they would soon see. Actually, it is beyond both arrogance and humility, beyond all pairs of opposites; it is simply what is. It involves not merely the humbling of the ego but its complete dissolution.
‘You are the Self even now, but you confuse this present consciousness or ego with the Absolute Consciousness or Self. This false identification is due to ignorance, and ignorance disappears together with the ego. Killing the ego is the only thing to be done. Realization already exists; no attempt need be made to attain it. For it is not anything external or new to be acquired. It is always and everywhere—here and now too.’12
D.: This method seems to be quicker than the usual one of cultivating the virtues alleged to be necessary for Realization.
B.: Yes. All vices centre round the ego. When the ego is gone, Realization results naturally.13
Having spoken of the saint and the mystic philosopher, mention should also be made of the occultist, that is the person who seeks Realization for the sake of the supernatural powers it may bring. This Bhagavan always discouraged. Realization may bring powers with it, as the higher includes the lower, but desire for powers will impede Realization, as the quest for the lower negates the higher. If the objective is the endowment of the ego with new powers, how can it at the same time be the liquidation of the ego? Such a person has not understood what Realization means.
D.: What are the powers of supermen?
B.: Whether the powers are high or low, whether of the mind or what you call the super-mind, they exist only with reference to him who possesses them. Find out who that is.14
B.: He that would abide in the Self should never swerve from his one-pointed attention to the Self or the pure Being that He is. If he slips or swerves away from that State, several kinds of vision conjured up by the mind may be seen; but one should not be misled by such visions—which may be of light or space—nor by the nada or subtle sounds that may be heard, nor by the visions of a personified God, seen either within oneself or outwardly, as if they had an objective reality. One should not mistake any of these things for the Reality. When the principle of intellection by which these visions etc. are cognized or perceived is itself false or illusory, how can the objects thus cognized, much less the visions perceived, be real?15
‘There are some foolish persons who, not realizing that they themselves are moved by the Divine Power, seek to attain all supernatural powers of action. They are like the lame man who said: “I can dispose of the enemy if someone will hold me up on my legs.”’
‘Since peace of mind is permanent in Liberation, how can they who yoke their mind to powers—which are unattainable except through the activity of the mind—become merged in the Bliss of Liberation, which subdues the agitation of the mind.16
D.: Can a yogi know his past lives?
B.: Do you know the present life that you wish to know the past? Find the present, then the rest will follow. Even with your present limited knowledge, you suffer much. Why should you burden yourself with more knowledge? Is it so as to suffer more?
D.: Does Bhagavan use occult powers to make others realize the Self or is the mere fact of Bhagavan's Realization enough for that?
B.: The spiritual force of Realization is far more powerful than the use of all occult powers. Inasmuch as there is no ego in the Sage there are no ‘others’ for him. What is the highest benefit that can be conferred on you? It is happiness, and happiness is born of peace. Peace can reign only where there is no disturbance, and disturbance is due to thoughts that arise in the mind. When the mind is itself absent, there will be perfect peace. Unless a person has annihilated the mind, he cannot gain peace and be happy. And unless he himself is happy, he cannot bestow happiness on ‘others’. Since however there are no ‘others’ for the Sage, who has no mind, the mere fact of his Self-realization is itself enough to make the ‘others’ happy too.17
‘When asked if occult powers (siddhis) can be achieved with the divine state (Isvaratva) as mentioned in the last verse of Dakshinamurthi Stotra, the Maharshi said: “Let the divine state be achieved first, and then the other questions may be raised.”’18
‘No powers can extend into Self-realization, so how can they extend beyond it? People who desire powers are not content with their idea of Pure Consciousness. They are inclined to neglect the supreme happiness of Realization for the sake of powers. In search of these they follow by-lanes instead of the highroad and so risk losing their way. In order to guide them aright and keep them on the highroad, they are told that powers accompany Realization. In fact Realization comprises everything and the Realized Man will not waste a thought on powers. Let people get first Realization and then seek powers if they still want to.’19
Powers may accrue before or after attaining Realization, or they may not, according to the nature of the person, but they are not to be valued or sought after, nor is their absence or the absence of visions or other such experiences to be taken as a cause for discouragement on the path.
D.: Is it not necessary or at least advantageous to render the body invisible in one's spiritual progress?
B.: Why do you think of that? Are you the body?
D.: No, but advanced spirituality must effect a change in the body, mustn't it?
B.: What change do you desire in the body and why?
D.: Isn't invisibility evidence of advanced wisdom (jnana)?
B.: In that case, all those who spoke and wrote and passed their lives in the sight of others must be considered ignorant (ajnanis).
D.: But the sages Vasishta and Valmiki possessed such powers.
B.: It may have been their destiny (prarabdha) to develop such powers (siddhis) side by side with their widsom (jnana). Why should you aim at that which is not essential but is apt to prove a hindrance to wisdom (jnana)? Does the Sage (jnani) feel oppressed by his body being visible?
D.: No.
B.: A hypnotist can suddenly render himself invisible. Is he therefore a Sage?
D.: No.
B.: Visibility and invisibility refer to him who sees. Who is that? Solve that question first. Other questions are unimportant.20
An American visitor was discouraged at having attained no powers.
D.: I have been interesting myself in metaphysics for over twenty years, but I have not gained any novel experiences as so many others claim to. I have no powers of clairvoyance, clair-audience, etc. I feel locked up in this body, nothing more.
B.: That is all right. Reality is only one and that is the Self. All other things are mere phenomena in it, of it and by it. Seer, sight and seen are all the Self only. Can anyone see or hear without the Self ? What difference does it make if you see or hear anyone close up or at a great distance? The organs of sight and hearing are needed in both cases. So is the mind. None of them can be dispensed with. In either case you are dependent on them. Why then should there be any clamour about clairvoyance or clair-audience? Moreover, what is acquired will also be lost in due course. It can never be permanent. The only permanent thing is Reality and that is the Self. You say: ‘I am’, ‘I am going’, ‘I am speaking’, ‘I am working’, etc. Hyphenate the ‘I-am’ in all of them. Thus: ‘I-AM’. That is the abiding and fundamental Reality. This truth was taught by God to Moses. ‘I AM that I-AM’ ‘Be still and know that I-AM god’, so ‘I-AM’ is God.21
From what has been said up to here it will be seen that Self-realization is the most simple and natural thing, in fact the only simple and natural thing, simply being what is, and yet the most rare, unknown to the saints, glimpsed briefly by the mystics. ‘Among thousands there is perhaps one who strives and is perfect. Among thousands who strive and are perfect there is perhaps one who knows Me as I am.’ (Bhagavad Gita, VII-3). Unfortunately it is a sign of our times that attainment of this supreme state is falsely claimed for many. The aspirant needs to discriminate.
Once attained, the Supreme State must be the same by whatever path and whatever religion it was approached, being, by its very nature, beyond differentiation.
‘Once attained, the state of Self-realization is the same by whatever path and in whatever religion it may be approached. There are three aspects of God according to one's approach to Realization. They are: Sat (Being), Chit (Consciousness), Ananda (Bliss).
‘The aspect of Being is emphasized by jnanis who are said to repose in the Essence of Being after incessant search and to have their individuality lost in the Supreme.
‘The Consciousness aspect is approached by yogis who exert themselves to control their breath in order to steady the mind and are then said to see the Glory (Consciousness of Being) of God as the one Light radiating in all directions.
‘The Beatitude aspect is approached by devotees who become intoxicated with the nectar of love of God and lose themselves in Blissful experience. Unwilling to leave this, they remain for ever merged in God.
‘The four margas, Karma, Bhakti, Yoga and Jnana are not exclusive of one another. They are described separately in classical works only to convey an idea of the appropriate aspect of God to appeal readily to the aspirant according to his predisposition.’22
Experience of Realization is known as samadhi. It is often supposed that samadhi implies trance, but that is not necessarily so. It is also possible to be in a state of samadhi while retaining full possession of human faculties. In fact, a Self-realized Sage such as the Maharshi is permanently in such a state. Even the preglimpses of Realization spoken of earlier do not necessarily imply trance.
‘The sannyasi visitor, Swami Lokesananda, asked about samadhi.’
B.: 1. Holding on to Reality is samadhi.
2. Holding on to samadhi with effort is savikalpa samadhi.
3. Merging in Reality and remaining unaware of the world is nirvikalpa samadhi.
4. Merging in ignorance and remaining unaware of the world is sleep.
5. Remaining in the primal, pure, natural state without effort is sahaja nirvikalpa samadhi.23
‘The old gentleman asked Bhagavan whether it was not necessary to go through nirvikalpa samadhi first before attaining to sahaja samadhi. Bhagavan replied: “When we have tendencies that we are trying to give up, that is to say when we are still imperfect and have to make conscious efforts to keep the mind one-pointed or free from thought, the thoughtless state which we thus attain is nirvikalpa samadhi. When, through practice, we are always in that state, not going into samadhi and coming out again, that is the sahaja state. In sahaja one sees the only Self and sees the world as a form assumed by the Self.”’25
The question of the nature of samadhi brings with it the question of activity. Uselessly trying to imagine what samadhi is or what Realization implies, instead of striving to attain it, people form theories as to whether the Realized Man can be active or not.
D.: Can a man who has attained Realization move about and act and speak?
B.: Why not? Do you suppose Realization means being inert like a stone or becoming nothing?
D.: I don't know, but they say that the highest state is withdrawal from all sense activities, thoughts and experiences; in fact, cessation of activity.
B.: Then how would it differ from deep sleep? Besides, it would be a state which, however exalted, comes and goes and would therefore not be the natural and normal state, so how could it represent the eternal presence of the Supreme Self, which persists through all states, and survives them? It is true that there is such a state and that in the case of some people it may be necessary to go through it. It may be a temporary phase of the quest or persist to the end of a man's life, if it be the Divine Will or the man's destiny, but in any case you cannot call it the highest state. If it were, you would have to say that not only the Sages, but God Himself has not attained the highest state, since not only are the Realized Sages very active but the Personal God (Isvara) himself is obviously not in this supremely inactive state, since He presides over the world and directs its activities.26
D.: What is samadhi?
B.: In yoga the term is used to indicate some kind of trance and there are various kinds of samadhi. But the samadhi I speak to you about is different. It is sahaja samadhi. In this state you remain calm and composed during activity. You realize that you are moved by the deeper Real Self within and are unaffected by what you do or say or think. You have no worries, anxieties or cares, for you realize that there is nothing that belongs to you as ego and that everything is being done by something with which you are in conscious union.27
After Realization a man may continue a life of worldly activity or not; it makes no difference to his state.
‘A visitor said: “Realized men generally withdraw from active life and abstain from worldly activity.”’
B.: They may or may not. Some even after Realization carry on trade or business or rule a kingdom. Some withdraw to solitary places and abstain from all activity more than the minimum necessary to keep life in the body. We cannot make any general rule about it.28
Inability to understand the apparent inactivity of the Sage is one of the difficulties of many Western writers. Firmly convinced that Christ was mistaken in saying that Mary had chosen the better part, modern Christians are apt to represent Martha, the outwardly active one, as superior and to criticize the Sage for what they consider inaction.
When asked by an aspirant whether his Realization, if attained, would help others, Bhagavan has been known to reply:
‘Yes, and it is the best help you possibly can give them.’
But then he added:
‘But in fact there are no others to help.’
The same paradox is proclaimed in Buddhism where, for instance in the Diamond Sutra, after speaking of compassion, the Buddha explains that in reality there are no others to be compassionate to. The Lord Buddha continued: Do not think, Subhuti, that the Tathagata would consider within himself: I will deliver human beings. That would be degrading thought. Why? Because there are really no sentient beings to be delivered by the Tathagata. Should there be any sentient beings to be delivered by the Tathagata, it would mean that the Tathagata was cherishing within his mind arbitrary conceptions of phenomena such as one's own self, other selves, living beings and a universal self. Even when the Tathagata refers to himself, he is not holding within his mind any such arbitrary thought. Only terrestrial human beings think of selfhood as being a personal possession. Subhuti, even the expression ‘terrestrial beings’ as used by the Tathagata does not mean that there are any such beings. It is only used as a figure of speech.29
‘People often say that a Realized Man should go about preaching his message. They ask how a man can remain quiet in Realization when there is misery also existing. But what is a Realized Man? Does he see misery outside himself? They want to determine his state without themselves realizing it. From his standpoint their contention amounts to this: a man has a dream in which he sees a number of persons. On waking up he asks, “Have the people in the dream also woke up?” It is ridiculous. Again, some good man says, “It does not matter even if I don't get Realization. Or let me be the last man in the world to get it so that I can help all others to become Realized before I do.” That is just like the dreamer saying: “Let all these people in the dream wake up before I do.” He would be no more absurd than this amiable philosopher.’30
And yet, paradoxically, the Sage is intensely active, although he may apparently be inactive.
‘A saying of Laotse from the Tao Te King was read out in the hall: “By his non-action, the Sage governs all.” Sri Bhagavan remarked: “Non-action is unceasing activity. The Sage is characterized by eternal and incessant activity. His stillness is like the apparent stillness of a fast rotating top. It is moving too fast for the eye to see, so it appears to be still. Yet it is rotating. So is the apparent inaction of the Sage. This has to be explained because people generally mistake his stillness for inertness. It is not so.”’31
Similar to this preoccupation with action was the question whether the Realized Man is bound by destiny. Really the question has no meaning. His body is bound by destiny, but, since he does not identify himself with the body, its destiny cannot bind him. Being one with the Eternal Self within which this body, this life, this world, passes like an appearance, he cannot be bound by anything.
‘This morning a visitor said to Bhagavan: “The Realized Man has no karma; he is not bound by destiny, so why should he still retain a body?”’
B.: Who asks this question—a Realized Man or an unrealized? Why worry about what the Realized Man does or why he does anything? Better think about yourself.
‘He was then silent. After a while, however, he explained further, “You are under the impression that you are the body, so you think the Realized Man has also a body. Does he say that he has? He may seem to you to have one and do things with it, as others do. The charred ashes of a rope look like a rope but are no use to tie anything with. So long as one identifies oneself with the body, all this is hard to understand. That is why it is sometimes said in answer to such questions that the body of the Realized Man continues to exist until his destiny has worked itself out and then falls away. An example of this that is sometimes given is that an arrow which has been loosed from the bow (destiny) must continue its course and hit the mark even though the animal that stood there has moved away and another has taken its place (Realization has been achieved). But the truth is that the Realized Man has transcended all destiny and is bound neither by the body nor by its destiny.”’32
Equally beside the point is the question whether the Realized Man can feel pain or pleasure (if pleasure, then pain also, because the two go together; they are a pair of opposites).
‘The sensation is common both to the Realized Man and the unrealized. The difference is that the unrealized man identifies himself with the body that feels it, whereas the Realized Man knows that all this is Self, all this is Brahman. If there is pain, let it be; it is also part of the Self and the Self is perfect.’33
Or whether he can commit sin. The very raising of this question implies failure to understand what is meant by Self-realization. Sin is the action of the ego or the individual being in its own interests against the universal harmony or the Will of God. But where there is no ego, where there is only the Universal Self, who is to act against whom?
‘An unrealized man sees one who is Realized and identifies him with the body. Because he does not know the Self and mistakes the body for the Self, he extends the same mistake to the body of the Realized Man. The latter is therefore considered to be the physical form. Again, the unrealized man, though in fact not the originator of his actions, imagines himself to be so, and considers the actions of the body as his own and therefore thinks the Realized Man to be so acting when the body is active. But the latter knows the truth and is not deceived. His state cannot be understood by the unrealized and therefore the question of his actions troubles the latter although it does not arise for him himself.’34
‘All good or divine qualities are included in Jnana (spiritual Enlightenment) and all bad or satanic qualities in ajnana (spiritual darkness). When jnana comes, all ajnana goes, so that all divine qualities come automatically. If a man is a Jnani, he cannot utter lies or commit any sin.’35
The saying that there is no ego or that the mind is dead sometimes leads to misunderstandings. What is meant is simply that the mind or ego as apparent creator or originator of policies, plans and ideas is dead. Understanding remains, and pure radiant Consciousness.
D.: Can we think without the mind?
B.: Thoughts can continue like other activities. They do not disturb the Supreme Consciousness.36
B.: People surmise the existence of the pure mind in the jivanmukta and the personal God. They ask how he could otherwise live and act. But this is only a concession to argument. The pure mind is in fact the Absolute Consciousness. The object to be witnessed and the witness finally merge together and Absolute Consciousness alone remains. It is not a state of blank or ignorance but is the Supreme Self.37
The mind of the Realized Man is sometimes compared to the moon in daytime.
‘The moon shines by reflecting the light of the sun. When the sun has set, the moon is useful for displaying objects. When the sun has risen no one needs the moon, though its disc is visible in the sky. So it is with the mind and the Heart. The mind is made useful by its reflected light. It is used for seeing objects. When turned inwards it merges into the source of illumination, which shines by itself, and the mind is then like the moon in daytime.’38
Sometimes people expressed fear at the thought of giving up the ego, but Bhagavan reminded them that they do so every time they go to sleep.
‘People are afraid that when the ego or the mind is killed, the result may be a mere blank and not happiness. What really happens is that the thinker, the object of thought and thinking all merge in the one Source, which is Consciousness and Bliss itself, and thus that state is neither inert nor blank. I don't understand why people should be afraid of a state in which all thoughts cease to exist and the mind is killed. They daily experience it in sleep. There is no mind or thought in sleep. Yet when one rises from sleep one says, “I slept well.”’39
Moreover, in sleep they surrender the ego in order to lapse into a mere blank, whereas Realization is merging into pure Consciousness, which is the uttermost Bliss.
‘In answer to a visitor Bhagavan made the following remark: You can have, or rather you will yourself be, the highest imaginable kind of happiness. All other kinds of happiness which you have spoken of as “pleasure”, “joy”, “happiness”, “bliss”, are only reflections of the Ananda which, in your true nature, you are.’40
It is impossible to describe samadhi since it transcends the mind. It can only be experienced.
‘An American lady asked Bhagavan what his experiences of samadhi were. When it was suggested that she should relate her experiences and ask if they were right, she replied that Sri Bhagavan's experiences ought to be correct and should be known whereas her own were unimportant. She wanted to know if Sri Bhagavan felt his body hot or cold in samadhi, if he spent the first three years and a half of his stay in Tiruvannamalai in prayer and so on.’
B.: Samadhi transcends mind and speech and cannot be described. Even the state of deep sleep cannot be described; the state of samadhi even less.
D.: But I know that I was unconscious in deep sleep.
B.: Consciousness and unconsciousness are modes of the mind. Samadhi transcends the mind.
D.: Still, you can say what it is like.
B.: You will know only when you are in samadhi.41
Sometimes he referred to the cinema screen as an illustration.
D.: If the Realized and the unrealized alike perceive the world, where is the difference between them?
B.: When the Realized Man sees the world he sees the Self that is the substratum of all that is seen. Whether the unrealized man sees the world or not, he is ignorant of his true being, the Self. Take the example of a film on a cinema screen. What is there in front of you before the film begins? Only the screen. On that screen you see the entire show, and to all appearances the pictures are real. But go and try to take hold of them and what do you take hold of? The screen on which the pictures appear so real. After the play, when the pictures disappear, what remains? The screen again. So it is with the Self. That alone exists; the pictures come and go. If you hold on to the Self, you will not be deceived by the appearance of the pictures. Nor does it matter at all whether the pictures appear or disappear.42
Once permanent, unwavering sahaja samadhi has been obtained, this is the state of Mukti or Liberation. People speak of jivanmukti and videhamukti, that is Liberation while still living and Liberation after death, but Bhagavan explained that the difference is only from the point of view of the observer; to the Realized Man himself it makes no difference whether he wears a body or not.
‘Mr. Bannerjee asked Bhagavan what is the difference between jivanmukti and videhamukti.’
B.: There is no difference. For those who ask it is said that a Realized Man with a body is a jivanmukta and that he attains videhamukti when he sheds the body, but this difference exists only for the onlooker, not for him. His state is the same before shedding the body and after. We think of him as a human form or as being in that form, but he knows that he is the Self, the One Reality, both inner and outer, which is not bound by any form. There is a verse in the Bhagavatha (Bhagavan here quoted the verse in Tamil) which says that just as a drunken man does not notice whether he is wearing his shawl or whether it has fallen off, so the Realized Man is hardly aware of his body and it makes no difference to him whether it remains or drops off.43
‘There are no stages in Realization or Mukti. There are no degrees of Liberation. So there cannot be one stage of Liberation with the body and another when the body has been shed. The Realized Man knows that he is the Self and that nothing, neither his body nor anything else, exists but for the Self. To such a one what difference could the presence or absence of a body make?’44
Sometimes Realization is called Turiya, the ‘Fourth State’, because it underlies the three states of waking, dream and deep sleep.
‘When I entered the hall Bhagavan was answering some questions and was saying: “There is no difference between the dream and waking states except that the former is short and the latter long. Both are the product of the mind. Because the waking state lasts longer we imagine it to be our real state; but actually our real state is what is sometimes called the Fourth State, which is always as it is, and is unaffected by waking, dream or sleep. Because we call these three ‘states’ we call that a state also; however, it is really just the natural state of the Self. A ‘fourth’ state would imply something relative, whereas this is transcendent.”’45
In truth, there is no bondage.
‘Our real nature is Liberation, but we imagine that we are bound and make strenuous efforts to get free, although all the while we are free. This is understood only when we reach that state. Then we shall be surprised to find that we were frantically striving to attain something that we always were and are. An illustration will make this clear. A man goes to sleep in this hall. He dreams he has gone on a world-tour and is travelling over hill and dale, forest and plain, desert and sea, across various continents, and after many years of weary and strenuous travel, returns to this country, reaches Tiruvannamalai, enters the Asramam and walks into the hall. Just at that moment he wakes up and finds that he has not moved at all but has been sleeping where he lay down. He has not returned after great efforts to this hall, but was here all the time. It is exactly like that. If it is asked why, being free, we imagine ourselves bound, I answer, “Why, being in the hall, did you imagine you were on a world-tour, crossing hill and dale, desert and sea?” It is all in the mind or maya.’46
‘8. Under whatever name and form one may worship the Absolute Reality, it is only a means for Realizing It without name and form. That alone is true Realization, wherein one knows oneself in relation to that Reality, attains peace and realizes one's identity with it.
‘9. The duality of subject and object, the trinity of seer, sight and seen, can exist only if supported by the One. If one turns inwards in search of that One Reality they fall away. Those who see this are those who see Wisdom. They are never in doubt.
‘21. What is the truth of the scriptures which declare that if one sees the Self one sees God? How can one see one's Self? If, since one is a single being, one cannot see one's Self, how can one see God? Only by becoming a prey to Him.
‘22. The Divine gives light to the mind and shines within it. Except by turning the mind inwards and fixing it in the Divine, there is no other way to know Him through the mind.
‘30. If one enquires “Who am I?” within the mind, the individual “I” falls down abashed as soon as one reaches the Heart and immediately Reality manifests itself spontaneously as “I-I”. Although it reveals itself as the “I” it is not the ego but the Perfect Being, the Absolute Self.
‘31. For him who is immersed in the Bliss of the Self, arising from the extinction of the ego, what remains to be accomplished? He is not aware of anything other than the Self. Who can comprehend his state?
‘32. Although the scriptures proclaim “Thou art That”, it is only a sign of weakness of mind to meditate, “I am That, not this”, because you are eternally That. What has to be done is to investigate what one really is and remain That.
‘33. It is ridiculous to say either “I have not realized the Self” or “I have realized the Self”; are there two selves for one to be the object of the other's realization? It is a truth within the experience of everyone that there is only one Self.
‘34. It is due to illusion born of ignorance that men fail to recognize That which is always and for everybody the inherent Reality dwelling in its natural Heart-centre and to abide in it, and that instead they argue that it exists or does not exist, that it has form or has not form, or is non-dual or dual.
‘35. To seek and abide in the Reality that is always attained is the only Attainment. All other attainments (siddhis) are such as are acquired in dreams. Can they that are established in the Reality and are free from maya be deluded by them?
‘38. As long as a man is the doer, he also reaps the fruits of his deeds, but as soon as he realizes the Self through enquiry as to who is the doer, his sense of being the doer falls away and the triple karma is ended. This is the state of eternal Liberation.
‘39. Only so long as one considers oneself bound do thoughts of bondage and Liberation continue. When one enquires who is bound, the Self is realized, eternally attained, eternally free. When thought of bondage comes to an end, can thought of Liberation survive?
‘40. If it is said that Liberation is of three kinds, with form, or without form, or with and without form, then let me tell you that the extinction of the three forms of Liberation is the only true Liberation.’