Atma Bodha - Post 56

Verse 46

तत्वस्वरूपानुभवादुत्पन्नं ज्ञानमंजसा ।

अहं ममेति चाज्ञानं बाधते दिग्भ्रमादिवत् ॥ ४६॥

TATTVA SWAROOPA ANUBHAVAAT

UTPANNAM JNAANAM ANJASAA

AHAM MAMA ITI CHA AJNAANAM

BAADHATE DIG-BHRAMA-AADI-VAT

[As a result of the experience of the Truth,  Self-knowledge is gained, and instantly  the ignorant notions of “I” and “mine”  are destroyed, just as wrong notions of directions (are destroyed by right information).]

To attain something that is not with us requires three things: knowledge, time and space. We need the (secular) knowledge of when and where to get it, the time to get it and to cover the space that separates us from it.

But the attainment of the Self is not in this category. It is already in us. To get it we need only Self-knowledge – no secular knowledge, no time and no coverage of space.

These two categories are given technical terms in Sanskrit by Indian Philosophers (these are not terms exclusive to Vedanta):

Apraaptasya Praapti: The former belongs to this category, which means “attaining that which we do not possess.” For this category, Action is required. The results of an action always come in the ‘future’ of the actual action, whether that may be just seconds away or centuries away.

With action comes the accompaniment of the whole train consequential to action, namely, the creation of merit or demerit (Punya or Paapa), the time when it will fructify, the actual fructification and the experience of the joy or sorrow. 

This is the cycle of Karma which, when looked at compositely and over the long term, is the same as the cycle of rebirth, of endless repetition.

Praptasya Prapti: This refers to the category of attaining “that which is already with us, but concealed from us.” Self-realization falls in this category. 

Here Karma is not necessary. We do not need to go through an endless cycle of births and deaths to acquire it. We simply need Knowledge to destroy the ignorance that conceals it. No action is required. 

“Digbhramadivat”: Wrong Notions About Directions

An Acharya takes great pains to illustrate why he considered this simile to be of outstanding quality. It is listed out so that the application can be compared to it thereafter. As usual it had its entertaining side:

1.        Patika: There is a traveler, who is journeying at night.

2.   Nagta Andhakara: He gets lost in the dense darkness and cloudy conditions.

3.       Dig Bhrama: He loses his sense of direction completely.

4.      Raja Marga: He loses the main road on which he was.

5.    Yatra-Tatra: He roams or wanders about here and there as a result.

6. Kantaka: He gets hurt by the sharp stones, he hits against trees, thorns, etc.

7.  Duhkham: He experiences great sorrows as a result of these.

8.      Surya Tejo: In the morning, at the coming of the dawn,

9.   Dig Bhrama: He is able to see his way again, and gets the proper directions.

10. Raja Marga: He finds the main road which he had lost.

11.  Anandam: He is ever happy that he has found his way once again.

The application of this simile, stage by stage, as laid out above is as follows:

1.        Jiva: The individual soul is also on a similar journey. 

2.     Avidya: He gets lost in the dense darkness of Avidya or ignorance.

3. Aham-Mama: He loses his true identity and gets identified with “I” and “mine”.

4.  Brahma Marga: He loses his path of going along the road to Brahman.

5.  Janma-Marana: So he gets knocked about and goes through endless rebirths.

6.    Vighna: These cause him to go through many a hardship or obstacle.

7.       Duhkha: He experiences great sorrows as a result.

8.  Jnana Tejo: Then at the right time he comes in touch with the spiritual teaching.

9. Sadhana: He does spiritual practices in earnest according to his Guru’s guidance.

10. Brahma Marga: He gets established on the spiritual path once again.

11. Moksham: He finally attains liberation and enjoys everlasting bliss.

One may view this as follows: Those aspects of the spiritual journey which require action are connected to the aspect of spiritual unfoldment needed to reverse and nullify the Karma accrued from the first category of Action.

In this Shloka, Acharya Sankara says when you experience your own form which is like the divine / Absolute (Tattva), there is knowledge that you are joy. The ignorance of “i” and “mine” is released.

Pay attention to your own experience that your happiness is from the Self. The more we reflect on this, the more we become independent of people’s words, success / failure and stress does not touch us.

With Right thinking (realizing that source of joy is myself), there is experience of joy and the more experience I have the more insight there is to the source of that experience. This can be reversed and understood as  —  with right thinking there is insight and with insight comes experience.

With enough reflection, contemplation becomes natural. “i” and “mine” is wrong thinking. Ignorance such as “i” and “mine” is released with right thinking, experience and insight just like being directionless is rectified when you are given one direction.

When we start to have Vairagya then we start to become independent of “Ahamkara” or ego. Renunciation of ego (“i”), and realizing that there is a deeper, higher “I” makes one free.

Love.