Vivekachudamani
Remaining
established as Brahman
Even after a person has acquired from the scriptures and by reasoning the knowledge that he is distinct from the five sheaths and is identical with Brahman, the beginningless vaasanaas which make him look upon himself as an agent and enjoyer, which are the cause of transmigration, remain strong. These have to be removed with effort by turning the senses away from external objects and fixing the mind on Brahman. The sages say that liberation is the elimination of vaasanaas. The wise man should get rid of the notions of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ with regard to the not-self in the form of the body and senses by being firmly established in the self. Realizing your innermost self, the witness of the intellect and its modifications, by means of the modification of the intellect in the form ‘I am Brahman’ give up the notion of ‘I-ness’ in the not-self. Give up concerns about conforming to the ways of the world and concerns about your own body; give up reading books other than those useful for the attainment of liberation. By these means get rid of identification with the body, etc.
(In sloka 271 the Acharya says that ‘lokaanuvartanam’, ‘dehaanuvartanam’ and ‘saastraanuvartanam’ should be given up. These three are referred to as lokavaasanaa, dehavaasanaa and saastravaasanaa by Svami Vidyaranya in Jivanmuktiviveka. What he says there is reproduced below:--
“Impure vaasana is of three kinds: desire for (unblemished reputation
in) the world (loka vaasana), obsession with learning (sasstra vaasana) and
undue attachment to the body (deha vaasana). The first one takes the form 'I
want to be always praised by everyone'. This is called impure because it is
something impossible of achievement. No one, however good, can always escape
slander. Even absolutely blemishless Sita was slandered. People speak ill of
others merely because of local peculiarities. The southern Brahmanas censor the
northerners, well-versed in the Vedas, as meat-eaters. The northern Brahmanas
retaliate by ridiculing the southern custom of marrying the daughter of a
maternal uncle and for carrying earthenware during travel. A pure man is looked
upon as a devil, a clever man as presumptuous, a man of forbearance as weak, a
strong man as cruel, an absent-minded man as a thief, and a handsome man as
lewd. Thus nobody can please everyone. So the scriptures advise us to treat
censure and praise alike.
The obsession with learning (sastra vasana) is of three kinds: addiction
to study, addiction to many scriptural texts and obsession with the mechanical
observance of injunctions with regard to the performance of rituals. The first
only is exemplified by sage Bharadvaja, who was not satisfied with having
devoted three successive lives to the study of the Vedas and continued the same
in his fourth life also. This is also an impure vasana because it is not
possible of achievement. Indra cured him of this by explaining to him the
impossibility of his undertaking and initiated him into the knowledge of the
conditioned Brahman for the attainment of a higher end.
Addiction to many scriptural texts is also an impure vasana because it is
not the highest aim. The example for this is Durvaasaa. Once he went with a
cart-load of scriptural works to Lord Mahadeva. Narada ridiculed him by
comparing him to a donkey carrying a huge load. Durvaasaa became angry and threw
away the books into the ocean. Lord Mahadeva then imparted to him the knowledge
of the Self which does not come from study alone.
Obsession with injunctions relating to the performance of rites is
exemplified by Nidaagha, as described in Vishnupurana. Another example of this
is Daasura who, because of the intensity of his desire to adhere to the
injunctions, could not find any place in the whole world pure enough for the
performance of rites. This mad desire for performing karma is also an impure
vaasanaa because it results in the person continuing in the cycle of repeated
birth and death. Saastra vaasanaa is also impure for another reason, namely,
that it is the cause of vanity.
Deha vaasanaa is of three kinds-- looking upon the body as the Self,
concern about making the body attractive and desire to remove defects in the
body. The first two are clearly impure vaasanaas because they are obstacles to
spiritual progress. The third is impossible of achievement because the body is
essentially impure and so it is also an impure vaasanaa).
As long as these three vaasanaas are there, knowledge of the Self cannot
arise. They are like iron fetters binding the legs.
If a sandal-stick remains in water for a long time, its natural fragrance
remains hidden. But if it is rubbed and the external odour is removed, then its
natural fragrance emerges in full measure. Similarly, the fragrance of the Self
which remains hidden because of the dirt in the form of the vaasanaas, emerges
when the vaasanaas are removed by ‘rubbing’ with wisdom. The aatmavaasanaa
which has remained obscured by the anaatmavaasanaas (lokavaasanaa,
saastravaasanaa and dehavaasanaa) shines forth when the anaatmavaasanaas are
destroyed by concentrating the mind on the aatman.
Note. Gita, 5.15 says that knowledge is covered by ignorance and so all
creatures are deluded. The jiva is identical with Brahman and so knowledge is
his very nature. But this is obscured by ignorance. Kathopanishad, 2.1.1 says
that the creator has made the senses go only outward and so they cannot know the
indwelling self. But a rare human being withdraws his senses from external
objects and concentrates his mind on the self and realizes that he is Brahman).
The more the mind is concentrated on the self, the more the vaasanaas
relating to the not-self are destroyed. When all the vaasanaas are destroyed the
realization that one is the pure Brahman is perfect. When it is always
established in the self, the mind is stilled. This means that the mind gives up
likes and dislikes and remains calm whatever happens. Vaasanaas are the
propensity of the mind to react to situations by the rise of anger and other
similar emotions without any consideration of the consequences. When the mind
becomes calm it means that the raajasic and taamasic vaasanaas have been
eliminated. In this way the superimposition of the not-self on the self should
be removed.
The taamasic qualities such as drowsiness and laziness are destroyed by raajasic qualities such as activity. The raajasic qualities are eliminated by the cultivation of sattvaguna by concentration of the mind. Ultimately one should go beyond sattvaguna also by concentrating the mind on nirguna Brahman. Convinced that the praarabdha karma will protect the body, with a mind which is not affected even when some cause for worry arises, one should strive with courage for the removal of super-imposition.
One should get rid of superimposition by distinguishing between the self and the body-mind complex and by the knowledge of the sruti statements such as ‘tat tvam asi’ which declare the oneness of Brahman and the Atman. This process should be continued till the awareness of the jiva and the universe becomes as false as a dream to one who has woken up from sleep. The Atman should be constantly meditated on. As the space in a pot is dissolved in the universal space, the individual self should be dissolved in Brahman. Like an actor discarding his role after the play is over, one should dissociate oneself from the gross and subtle bodies and remain as the pure Self. That which is signified by the word ‘I’ is the witness of the ego, etc. It is found to exist even in deep sleep. The sruti says that it is unborn and eternal. Identification with one’s family, clan, name, and station in life, all of which relate to the gross body should be given up. Similarly the qualities of the subtle body such as agency should also be given up. The ego is the root cause of samsaara and is the first to be superimposed on the self.
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