Atma Bodha - Post 55

Verse 45

स्थाणौ पुरुषवद्भ्रान्त्या कृता ब्रह्मणि जीवता ।

जीवस्य तात्त्विके रूपे तस्मिन्दृष्टे निवर्तते ॥ ४५॥

STHAANAU PURUSHA-VAT BHRAANTYAA

KRITAA BRAHMANI JEEVATAA

JEEVASYA TAATTVIKE ROPE

TASMIN DRISHTE NIVARTATE

[Due to delusion, a ghost is seen instead of post. So also, Brahman is seen as the individual Jiva. The real nature of the Jiva, when it is seen as the Self, (then the Jiva) is destroyed.]

Wrong identification, which was the very root of the ‘forgetfulness’ or drifting away from the Self, is only at the level of the mind. It is just a thought, the “I” - thought. The entire problem of spirituality is discovered to have arisen from just this one thought. Does that not make the whole of spiritual life look so trivial!

Volumes of books have been written on this “trivial” problem! If we correct that single, original, stray thought of “I” – meaning the thought which led us astray from the Self – then the error is corrected, and with it the Self discovered.

In trying to make us understand the sheer simplicity of spiritual illumination, Sri Shankaracharya in this verse blesses us again with another one of his unique similes… “Sthanau Purushavat”:

The Post and the Ghost Simile

Here we are teased again about the nature of the delusion that has overcome us, and an Acharya’s fertile imagination was triggered by it.

A man is returning home late at night in the fog. As he approaches his home, he is terrified by the sight of a man with his hands up in the air, as though eerily stalking through his garden. He is gripped by fear at the sight of this ‘ghostly’ figure.

As he slowly recovers  from the shocking sight, he recognizes that it is not a ghost at all, but an old dead tree which was struck by lightning a year ago and whose trunk and a couple of branches still remained as a reminder of its death. In the fog it looked like the ghostly figure of a man and the branches looked like his twisted hands! That is how delusion clouds our vision of the truth, like a ghost in the fog that never existed.

In utter darkness, sometimes, we catch a shadowy glimpse of a tree and mistake it for a human being – especially if we are anticipating a human being to be available there. The darkness creates a delusion in our mind. A police man thinking of chasing a thief may mistake the tree as the thief. On the other hand, the thief trying to escape from a Policeman may mistake the tree for the policeman. Darkness coupled with expectation creates variety of delusions in human mind. Likewise, in such darkness, we can mistake a rope as a snake.

Both darkness and delusion must be removed

How do we remove the delusion? First the darkness must be removed. Next, our expectation which is creating the delusion must also be removed. It is not enough to prove that the distant shadow is not of a human being. In such a case, the mind may create another delusion that it is  a statue or pillar towards which the mind has a leaning or expectation.

The darkness creates the appropriate image in the mind due to this delusion. So, it must be conclusively proved that what is before is the TREE and nothing else. Darkness and delusion should both be removed for the purpose.

Similarly – it is not enough to prove that there is no snake before us on the road. In that case, the mind may assume it to be a long vegetable like snake gourd or a long curved stick. The mind imagines many such things.

The delusion continues until the veil of ignorance is totally removed and the fact is established.

In the same way, we mistake the Paramatma or the SELF in us to be the jeeva we perceive with the five senses and the mind. This is because of the ignorance in us, which creates all sorts of delusions.

What is unreal appears as real and what is real appears as unreal – until the Maya or avidya in us is totally destroyed and it is established beyond a shadow of doubt that the jeeva consciousness in us is in fact the Atma or Paramatma.

Who perceives this? It is I, the Atma; I, the Brahman; I, the SELF who perceives this. The perceived also is “I”. The perception also is ‘I’.

The removal of ignorance is all that is needed for this realization and liberation.

We are what we are seeking. All that we need is guidance to take our eyes from articles, beings and circumstances to look more closely at who we are. Acharya Sankara in this verse explains how delusion causes doubts in mind and how with right knowledge, the true nature of the Self can be understood.

Due to delusion I project that a post is a ghost. We always project one who scares / hurts us. Doubts hold us back. Imagine the doubt that I am not the nature of joy! - How much this will hold us back!

There is a wrong knowledge that instead of "I" being the Self, “i” is the ego. Instead of me being united with the substratum which is “existence-awareness-joy”, all I perceive is the world that grows and dies. I feel finitude in infinity. This is Bhranti (confusion / delusion).

We have to find the fundamentals of this individuality — then the Jiva (individuality) will go away just like when you face your fear, then it fades away.

Swami Tejomayananda shares that “Maya” cannot handle introspection. Like a dream that rolls up into itself when a dreamer wakes up, our true nature can be experienced — of being independently joyous.

Self-realisation or the true Self revealing Itself follows inevitably when ignorance is cleared. The ‘egocentric individuality’ sees the world only as a ghost; the enlightened sage alone sees it as a post, and loses all fear for it.

It has to be known that the intellect has only one function, the function of discrimination.

Thus, the intellect, borrowing consciousness, only does one thing. It points out to our mind, our ignorance and our false belief/ delusion of taking the unreal as real, the ghost as the post or our limited identity of Body and Mind as real and eternal.

Once this is done, it is clearly taught by an Acharya to his student that Intellect does not have any function beyond this and once it proves to our Mind about our mistaking post to be Ghost, our physical existence as real existence, the intellect's function is over and at once, at that instant, Atman shines by itself, as We were and we are ever, the PURE SELF.

It is just similar to how a liquid is used or some powder is used to brush / clean an ornament which is very dull in appearance. Once this cleaning is done, Gold shines by itself, as the gathering of dust over the gold had been obstructing the vision of Gold. This obstruction may temporarily block the vision / sight of Gold but IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE GOLD HAS LOST ITS SHINE / GLORY.

Gold is always Gold, Brahman ever exists, We are verily the ATMAN and the whole vedantha, all the upanishads teach us only this ONE, SINGLE TRUTH.

Love.