Before You Start Meditation

संसार के दो पाले

कबड्डी के मैच की तरह संसार में भी दो पाले हैं. एक पाला है मन का और दूसरा पाला है ईश्वर का. जब जब मन के पाले में होते है तो हमारे ऊपर मन का ही राज़ चलता है. मन हमें इस संसार में बांधता है और बांधे रखता है. और प्रकृति भी हमें कर्म बंधन के अनुसार फल देती रहती है. हम बड़े खुश होते है की मेरे पास यह है मेरे पास वो है. पर वास्तव में वो मन खुश होता है हमें चक्र में डाल कर. क्यूंकि जब मृत्यु अटल सत्य है तो हमारा लक्ष्य धन कमाना और विभिन्न वस्तुए इकठ्ठी करना कैसे हो सकता है.

अब दूसरा पाला है परमात्मा का पाला. मन जल्दी से इस पाले की और जाने नहीं देता. जैसे इस पाले की और जाने लगते है तो मन हमें भटकाने लगता है. पर इस पाले में आने के बाद मन का राज़ नहीं चलता क्यूंकि यहाँ सब कुछ साफ़ साफ़ दिखने लगता है और यह भी समझ में आने लगता है की वो मन ही था और कुछ नही.

इस पाले में धीरे धीरे प्रवेश करके मन की जकड़ से आपने आप को आज़ाद करना है. जब आप अपने आप को आज़ाद कर लेंगे अपने मन से, तभी परमात्मा को अपने सामने खड़ा पाएंगे..  तभी तो कहते है – धीरे-धीरे हे मना धीरे सब कुछ होए.

हरि ॐ तत सत.   

Three types of karma with reference to the jivan-mukta.

 Three types of karmas are –

1. Sanchit-karma – Collection of all karmas due to past actions and past lives

2. Prarabdha-karma – On-going fruit of past actions and past lives

3. Agami-karma – Future fruit of past actions and past lives

Jivan-mukta’s sanchit-karma

Sanchit-karmas of a jivan-mukta are put to naught the very moment he realize the Self. Swami Chinmayananda gives the example of a prisoner whose ‘file is closed; the very moment he dies – one cannot execute the court order to hang him for the murder he had committed, for simple reason that he is no more there to undergo such a punishment. In the same way the moment the ‘Self-knowledge’ is dawn, individuality, which is the performer of the actions to whom the results should accrue ends. When individuality has ended, the cumulative results of the actions – both the good as well as the bad in the account of the individual are written off.

Jivan-mukta’s Prarabbdha-karma

Prarabbdha-karma, being those that have started yielding results, cannot be prevented and will inevitably affect the Jivan-mukta’s conditioning of body, mind and intellect. No one ‘gyani’ or ‘agyani’ can avoid the prarabbdha-karma.

Hence the statement “prarabbdha bhogena nasyati – Prarabbdha comes to an ends only after experiencing them.

Further explained by Shankaracharya – “That action which was performed before the dawn of knowledge and because of which this body is conjured up is not destroyed by self-knowldege without yielding its fruit…like the arrow shot at an object that is assumed to be a tiger, it does not then stop just because the object turns out to be a cow. It still pierced the object with full force. “

So, a jivan-mukat have to undergo fruit of his prarabbdha-karma. But at the same time the jivan-mukta is utterely unaffected by this prarabbdha-karma because of his firm Self-knowledge.

Jivan-mukta’s Agami-karma

Jivan-mukta’s agami-karmas also ends just like his sanchit kara. Just as the ‘sanchit karma file’ is closed, so too are the agami karmas which are supposed to mature and give their effects in a future birth had jivan-mukta continued to be ignorant of the Self.

On the jivan-mukta’s agami karmas, the law of Karma has something special to state – The jivan-mukta’s meritorious agami karma (punya) accrue to those who have loved and served him while his negative agami-karma (papa) accrue to those who have disrespected and distressed him. 

What is Linga Sarira?

Sukshma sarira or the subtle body is called as ‘Linga-sarira’. The word ‘Linga’ derived from Sanskrit language verbal root – ‘lagi’ it means a sign or an indication. Thus the ‘linga-sarira’ can be translated as the ‘indicating body’ or a ‘pointing body’. Subtle body is constituted of 17 components and all the 17 components are inert in themselves. But after all this it is working and it is experiencing different moments of life. It means there is something else which is giving the powers to the subtle body. So, it is the indication that the subtle body is a sure indicator to the existence of an ‘else’ source; which is our “self”. So working of sukshma sarira is itself an indication toward the divine self within human being. Since the functioning of sukshma-sarira indicating the presence of ‘Atman’; it is rightly called ‘linga-sarira’ or the indicating body.

What is a Guru; the master? and What is the significance of the master?

Guru is one who removes ignorance – ‘gu’ stands for ignorance and ‘ru’ stands for dispeller. In this spiritual context guru is the person who removes the ignorance of the self. As per Vedanta a guru must have two qualifications; these are:

a) Srotriya

b) Brahama-nishtha

a. Srotriya – Srotriya means one who is well versed in Vedantic lore. Guru has to be well-versed or expert in Vedantic text to teach the student with all explanation. Our scriptures are the perfect tools to awaken the student from the realm of illusion to the state of truth. Self-realized master also uses languages of Vedanta to explain the various intense topics. Hence, the need for Guru to be well versed in the Vedantic lore. 

b. Brahama-Nishtha – One who has had a direct experience of the self as being identical with brahaman and is ever established in this experience is called ‘Braham-nishtha’. It means one who is teaching knowledge of Brahaman or truth must have experienced of it otherwise he/she cannot teach the subtle knowledge. Hence for a teacher to be effective he must be a brahamanishth.

Why Guru ?

On path of self-realization Guru creates trust in us.  There is no other way to experiment on the path of realization; Guru is only proof of the divine knowledge otherwise divine knowledge has no any meaning; because effect of the knowledge is never physical or can be seen physically. 

We can master the language of Sanskrit (The actual language of Vedas and other Indian scriptures) and mastery over text of various scriptures but without the grace and guidance of a Guru one can never understand the true meaning of scriptures.

Scriptures may not have answers arisen in your mind on journey on path of knowledge but your Guru has the answers.

As only a experienced teacher can teach a class or a student in a effective way; this same is applicable on a Guru also.

How a Guru is important is describe in “Sarva-vedanat-siddhanta-sarasangraha" of Shankaracharya in verse no. 254 –

When Lord is pleased with the continuous devotion and worship as prescribed in Vedas, he assumes the form of the Guru. He is mercy incarnate and he imparts the knowledge of reality and takes the aspirant across the ocean of samsara.    

Panch - Koshas The Five Sheaths

Five koshas in human instrument are:-

1. Food Sheath or Annamaya Kosa
2. Pranamaya Kosa (Vital-Air Kosa)
3. Manomaya Kosa (Mental Body)
4. Intellectual Sheath – Vijnanamaya Kosha
5. Bliss Sheath (Anandmaya Kosha)

Food Sheath or Annamaya Kosa

This is outer layer of human being; our physical self. It is our human body. This is grossest of among all five sheaths. This is least pervasive and least subtle. As its name; it actually arises from food and also continue on food. It has arisen from the essence of the food assimilated by father and is nourished in the womb by the food taken by the mother. It exists on food eaten by the individual. After death it also becomes food for other creatures like worm and plant.

So, this annamaya kosa arises from food, exist on food and finally become food. It nourishes on food and it is regulated by pranamaya kosa (Vital-Air Sheath). Any disturbance in vital-air sheath directly affects the function of gross body. Its dimensions remain almost static.

Pranamaya Kosa (Vital-Air Kosa)

The fivefold faculty (Pancha – Prana) which correspond to the five physiological systems detailed by the biologists, represent the vital-air sheath. It surrounds the gross body. It is more subtle and pervasive than our gross body. Pranamaya kosa can control and affects the functions of gross body. Because it controls the all physiological functions and hence the five physiological functions gradually weaken as one advance in age. This explains why an old person has to rely on medicines so as to help these faculties function normally. This proves the effect of pranic body on food sheath or physical body.

Pranas flow on a fixed pathways within the pranaic body. These fixed pathways are called nadis.

In pranamaya kosa; five types of pranas flows and these are: -

1    Prana – Faculty of Respiration it controls the inhalation and exhalation of breath.

2       

      Apana – Faculty of Excretion - controls the evacuation and rejection of the waste from the body.

3    Vyana – Faculty of Circulation of Blood - this controls the circulation of blood and thereby the nourishment of body cells and organs. 

4    Udana - Faulty Governing reverse processes like vomiting, burping etc.

5    Samana – Faculty of Digestion  

Manomaya Kosa (Mental Body)

Mental body is consists of flow of thoughts and this level of prana is experienced by all humans in the form of thoughts. Continuous flow of thoughts constitute mind. So, manomaya kosha is the mental sheath and is responsible for regulating all thoughts and actions within human being. It also acts as mediator between the more imperial koshas (Pranamay and annamaya) and the elementary subtle koshas (Vijnamaya and Anandmaya). Manomaya kosha relays information to and from the various bodies and is responsible for absorbing all of the input from the external world as well as receiving information from the intuitive world. With such information it regulates and executes decisions and moderates the activities of prana and physical body.

This sheath is more subtle than pranic body or pranmaya kosha and also it is more pervasive than vital-air and food sheaths. This controls the both food sheath and vital-air sheath.

Whereas as annamaya kosha and pranamaya kosha are time limited or dependent upon the movement and passage of time and space, manomaya kosha is not. It has the ability to transfer through the past, present and future.

Intellectual Sheath – Vijnanamaya Kosha

An intellectual sheath is more pervasive and subtler than mental sheath, vital-air sheath and food sheaths. Besides all this it has a unique capacity to travel even beyond the realms known to the mind and penetrate new and unknown realms. It means speed of mind is definitely unbeatable but mind only travel within the store information but it is not true with intellect; capacity of intellect is beyond that of mind. Intellect can travel to the unknown realm; all scientific discoveries due to this capacity of intellect only.

Vijnanamaya kosha or intellectual sheath is a product of sattwa gunna. When the consciousness of the spiritual aspirant is awakened the vijnanamaya kosha, they begin to experience life on more subtle plain of experience. The qualities of wisdom usually unveil themselves at this level as life is experience on an intuitive level and one is able to perceive the underlying mechanism of the manifested reality.

This is the sheath of intellect that together with the pranamaya kosha makes up the subtle body.  It constantly identifies itself with the physical body, and exactly here is where the eternal soul makes the mistake and assumes an identity and a time frame of existence.

Bliss Sheath (Anandmaya Kosha)

It is last and innermost of all five sheaths. It consists exclusively of vasana (inherent tendencies) before they grossify into thoughts or actions. The intellect functions under the control and guidance of the vasanas. The bliss sheath is the most pervasive of the five sheaths.

It is subtle and pervasive that all other five sheaths. The bliss sheath pervades all other five sheaths.

The Bliss sheath further can be understood - The deep sleep state of consciousness, which is the state of one’s ignorance of everything, is the condition in which only vasana (tendencies) exist but without manifestation.

It means it is covering of vsansas in original form; unmanifested form. Here in this sheath the practitioner experiences bliss and ecstasies.  The soul embellished and seduced by the sensations, forgets about itself, falling prey again and again to duality and ego gratification.  At this juncture the ego in conjunction with the soul perpetrates individuality.

Anandamaya kosha survives death and evolves through incarnations. The term bliss sheath is derived from the fact that an individual experiences relative bliss when associated with it. In the waking state and dream state, one experiences a continuous agitation in the mind, whether great or small, but on reaching the chamber of sleep (bliss sheath)—whether rich or poor, healthy or sick, young or old—one experiences undisturbed peace and bliss. This phenomenon occurs because of the total cessation of agitations experienced in the waking and dream states. Hence, the bliss referred to here is a relative experience and it is not be misunderstood as the infinite Bliss of God- Realization.

Each one of the five concentric layers of personality is described to be within its immediate outer layer. Thus, the vital-air sheath is said to be within the food sheath, the mental sheath within the vital-air sheath, the intellectual sheath within the mental sheath and the bliss sheath within the intellectual sheath.

Nine Blessings for human beings.

Nine Blessings are described in Vedas. These are: -

1. Human Birth - Nara or Manushya Janma
2. Manhood - Purustvam
3. Sattvik Attitude in Life - Viprata
4. Steadfastness on the path of righteousness, as prescribed in Vedas - Vaidika Dharma Marga Pararta
5. Correct knowledge of the deep significance of the Vedas -  Vidvattvam
6. Differentiation between the ‘Self’ and ‘Non-Self’ – 'Atama – Anatma – Vivecanam'
7. Direct Experience – Svanubhava
8. To be established in the awareness of the identity of Brahama and Atman – Brahmantmana Samsthiti
9. Liberation – Mukti