June 19, Vasishtha
Discourse on Yoga Vasishtha
Day 151, June 19
Sri Sadgurubhyo namaha
Om Santissantissantihi
In Aadya srishti varnana, Akasaja's story is being narrated to us.
This entire world is like a dream. Beginning with the Pralaya, this creation merges in God. Then it is re-created.
We get a doubt. If we accept that this creation is illusory, then the first man, Virat Purusha, Hiranygarbha, is He not real? If He is real, then His body must be real, His life energy, His mind, His actions, and the rest of Creation must be real, whatever has emanated from within Him.
The fact is, Hiranyagarbha is our imaginary creation. He is not anything else but Pure Consciousness. He has no substance.
How can something unreal manifest from the real?
You are in delusion. Cause and effect is a concept of your imagination. He is beyond that. All the descriptive names say that He is eternal, formless and nameless. He is not subject to birth or death.
Once, Adi Sankara was giving his discourse in a jungle about the falseness of this creation. A wild, intoxicated elephant came towards the group trumpeting wildly. All the disciples ran for protection. Even the teacher ran, packing up his books.
They all sat on top of a hill in a safe spot. Then, when the lesson resumed, a student asked, addressing Sri Adi Sankara:
Why did you run, if the elephant is only a fantasy?
The teacher answered:
Yes, the elephant is an illusion. That we all ran is also an illusion.
That this entire Creation is merging in the Paramatma is real.
If such a merging occurs, something of substance must be there for it to merge.
Then, it is clarified that the occurrence of merging also is an illusion.
Sorrow is sorrow, be it a lesser or greater grief. But sorrow itself is made up. It is fantasy. It is illusory.
Realize that you yourself are Hiranyagarbha.
The immature souls go and merge at Pralaya, the great deluge, but get re-created. Like lac that is melted, sticks to a substance, they are reborn and re-create this world. They do not lose their existence completely. The remembrance of their past creation is the source of the emergence of the new creation in them.
If you become enlightened, then you go beyond Hiranyagarbha and become one with the Supreme Soul. One becomes Brahman Himself. Only then he can merge. Then there is no coming back, no rebirth occurs.
Aham Brahmaasmi - 'I am myself Brahman' is the Realization that is required . Until you realize that, you are subject to rebirth.
All creation merges. Only Hiranyagarbha remains. He created Himself.
Yama Dharmaraja has declared that Hiranyagarbha alone transcends death.
In the Mrityunjaya stotra (Tryambakam yajaamahe ...) we pray: I must remember always that I am immortal. I must be released from the false feeling that death exists. It does not mean that by praying thus, in this body we will survive for thousands of years. The delusion that death exists will be removed from us.
Death entered Satya Loka with great difficulty. He tried to capture Akasaja with his one thousand hands. But Akasaja was elusive. He escaped capture. You sometimes see it shown in movies, where the hand moves in space, trying to catch something which appears to be there, but is not.
Death went to his master Yama Dharmaraja and asked the reason for his failure in being able to swallow Akasaja.
Yama Dharmaraja explained that unless Karma is there to assist him, he cannot capture any individual. Despite searching high and low, the Karma Pasha, the rope called Karma, which could bind him and make him vulnerable to death was non-existent for Akasaja. Therefore, He could not be bound by Death.
The name Akasaja itself explains the individual's attribute. He is space itself. The space or sky we conceive or experience, has the five elements hidden in it. But the Chidaakaasa, the space of Pure Consciousness is free from the five elements. This Akasaja has emerged from it and therefore he is beyond death.
When the body is visible, it must be the result of Karma, either present or past. Because Akasaja's form was visible to Death, he tried to grab him, and could not figure out why he failed.
If another person has imagined a mountain, you cannot touch that mountain which has its existence only in the imagination of the other person.
Akasaja has not performed any Karma. Therefore he cannot be caught. He has no Karma rope that would tie him up in knots, or would aid Death in binding him.
Vikara, ***, or any deviation from the normal state, causes a body. In deep sleep, even if a mosquito bites you, you are not aware. Daily we experience that state of having no vikara, of remaining in that pure, sublime state. It is called Nirvikaara sthithi, a state that is free from any impurity.
kaaranaanaam ..
There is no cause for the emergence of Akasaja.
Without a cause does anything come into being in this world? For cooked rice to become existent, you need raw rice, water, fire, vessel, and so on. Gold is the material cause for a jewel. Clay is the cause for a ***.
For Akasaja, there is no such cause. He is none other than Consciousness. This Pure Consciousness is not even consisting of the five elements. It is most subtle and perfectly pure.
How can something so subtle hold something as big as the universe?
A small chip in a computer holds so much of information. Chit - Consciousness, is similar to the computer chip.
If your consciousness did not allow for its existence, how did the vast sky come into existence? Rewind your thinking.
How can a tree exist in free space? Akasaja has no mind, no mental vibration. No past to affect him.
naitad ..
Akasaja has no mind. He is free from all the three types of Karma. Without mind, body, or intellect, name, or form, how can He exist?
We are under the delusion that nothing can exist without these.
What is required for existence? 'Being' alone is required. 'Sat' or 'Rta' are words to describe the consciousness of 'IS'.
He exists without any modifications, changes, birth or death.
He has no Karma, and no Mind.
verse
Very clearly it has been stated by Yama Dharmaraja.
The five sheaths, the Pancha Koshas are there. In cabbage there are layers. If you remove each layer, what is left? Nothing. Only the name or concept of Cabbage is there. Such is the state of Brahman. It is not nothingness. You cannot call it void.
Search for the source of the Mind. What is left is Brahman.
vishadaakaasaroopini - He is limitless and vast as the sky.
There is no cause to cause His existence. Always the cause is more powerful than the effect.
He has no birth or death.
Death had a question: How can anything be, without a cause?
Mahatmas, the great souls only transform one thing into another. They do not manifest anything out of nothing.
verse
Hiranyagarbha is of the nature of Parabrahma. One's true nature must always be guarded and protected. Then compassion will manifest. The violent or cruel traits will not raise their heads.
He is in a state of contemplation.
If everything is Karma, then there is no liberation. Here there is no Karma. He is none other than Knowledge, Vijnana, and Akasa, pure and pristine like space, Pure Consciousness.
When we see Sadguru also, we get this same question: The same descriptions applied to God are applied to Guru.
Nityam, suddham, niraakaaram, ...
We see Sadguru breathing; we see his body and his actions. How to accept that he is God or that he is different from us?
Yama recognized the doubt in Death's mind and explained:
The life force and activity seen by us, is all an illusion.
It proves that the imaginary Yama is giving a discourse to an imaginary pupil, Death.
You may imagine that Sadguru is breathing, and that he is engaged in activities. It is all only in your mind. His existence is true only inside of your own mind. You are bound by these thoughts that he is breathing and doing things and is engaging in thoughts. But He has no Karma. He is not breathing. His body itself is imaginary and exists only in your mind.
Sadguru is never born. He never perishes. His visible body should not be pondered upon to generate negative thoughts.
Death himself has expressed doubts here. He is the greatest grandfather for us. Just as he did, we should also ask questions and clear our doubts.
In regard to Akasaja,
Listen to this carefully, with attention. Saunaka is a maharshi who is eagerly engaged in listening to spiritual messages. Sunaka means dog. Saunaka is a word derived from Sunaka.
Dogs accompany Dattatreya. Dogs at once raise the ears, perk up their ears to listen to the master's words, or any sudden noise. Like that, will full attention one should listen to spiritual discourses.
This Akasaja has no intention of performing Karma. You have a false impression about him. Akasaja has no impressions whatsoever.
verse
This example once again will raise questions in our minds.
Visualize a pillar of nothing but Knowledge. There is a statue made up of consciousness alone that has been sculpted on the pillar. You imagine that the statue is entertaining thoughts. All this is only your imagination.
This is spoken of by Yama, about Death, that he is imagining that such a statue which is illusory is entertaining thoughts and engaging in actions, when he is imagining things about Akasaja.
verse
Pure Consciousness alone constitutes Akasaja.
Kam is the same as Kham we heard earlier. How the child became enlightened, we learned.
Akhanda Anandam - unbroken bliss is He.
Just as to flow is the nature of water.
In our imagination, there is a certain boundary. Our vision stops at the curve at the horizon, when we see the ocean. We cannot see the ocean to its end, all the distance to the other shore.
Space also is endless. Our vision cannot extend to its limitlessness. Therefore we call it nothingness.
Air's nature is to move. We have the experience. Similarly, it is Akasaja's nature to ever remain in the state of Brahman.
If we try to bind air, he will release himself. Hanuman cannot be bound. He is the future Brahma.
When we are engaged in spiritual pursuit, we make efforts. But liberation is not something to reach or attain. The experience of it is itself liberation.
People wrongly equate liberation with death. It is not death.
verse
Akasaja has no Karma from now or from the past. Therefore, he is not bound by birth or death. He is Truth. He is eternal.
The sahakaari, the assistant, the cooperating factor, Karma which cause birth and death is absent in Him.
How can one without cause be visible to my eyes? Death asked.
He is His own cause.
In the world we see the concept of cause and effect. Akasaja has no birth.
Then, how am I able to see Him?
We hear of Svayambhu - born of itself.
This is a secret. Just understand and keep it to yourself. Do not engage in debates over it with others.
Of the 12 Siva Lingas, of the Dwadasa Jyotirlingas, the Siva Lingams have changed over the course of time. In some places, the Siva Linga cannot be moved. It is in the form of energy, radiance. Since we cannot see or experience energy, a form is given to it so that we may see it and touch it. That is the Siva Linga installed there. Many have experienced that when they touch the Siva Linga at such powerful Kshetras, a sensation is felt, of some divine energy, like a mild electrical charge.
Sadguru is like that. For Light, there is no death.
When the foreign cultures came and attacked the shrines in India, the priests removed the main Siva Linga. Later, another Siva Linga was placed. But the energy in the spot remains the same.
Sri Vishnu Sahasranama gives the names: Svayambhu Sambhu...
He emerges of His own Self.
He had never performed karma. He is currently not engaged in karma. How can you, Death, grab someone like that?
Death still questions: How can he be visible to me, if he is free from all karma?
Now, today being Friday, abhishekam will be performed to Lord Sri Datta Venkateswara.
This is Adhika Masa. Called Purushottama Masa by some. Like a leap year. An extra month in the Hindu calendar is added. It gives greater benefit when any auspicious activity is engaged in during this month, such as chanting the Hanuman Chalisa, Guru mantra, and witnessing the abhishekam; everything religious or spiritual gives enhanced benefits and rewards when performed during this month.
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Guru Datta
Om Santissantissantihi