Post by Amritha Varshini on Aug 18, 2013 20:37:00 GMT 5.5
Article by Sri Krishnan (vsk_tiruppugazh@yahoo.com)
"How can I be That?'
A Pundit was giving a discourse on Self knowledge. He said that the Self in every individual is the reflection of God. He referred to the great words of truth (Maha Vakya), "You are That", mentioned in Upanishad. Addressing the audience, he said: "You are the manifestation of God. There is divinity within you. In short, you are God yourself". At the end of the discourse, when the Pundit queried whether anyone in the audience has any doubt, a young man got up and asked: "Punditji, how can you say I am God? I have a personal outlook, I am a limited person in the domain of my body. I run after sense objects. I am deeply attached to my family. My knowledge on spiritual matters is very limited. When I have all these imperfections, how can I be compared with God who is all pervading, limitless, infinite and knowledge absolute? "
"Good question; I am glad you asked it", said the Pundit. He continued: "Rather than going by the literal meaning of the term ‘You are That’, you are expected to go by the implied meaning of the term which indicates that the core and the essence of our existence is the same. The power that unites us all is the same. It is only when you consider yourself separate, the difference of 'You" and "mine" comes. The Maha Vakya simply means that the power that unites us all, the underlying reality, is the same. By declaring "You are That", the Upanishad simply asks you to seek your basic identity with God. You are the part of the universal whole, the God. Remove the concept of duality from your mind and you would realize the full meaning of the term.
For those who still could not understand, the Pundit explained the dialogue that took place between the saint Uddalaka and his son, Svetaketu which appears in Chandogya Upanishad. Having studied all scriptures, the young Svetaketu went and stood before his father, saint Uddalaka. Saint Uddalaka wanted to test whether his son, Svetaketu has attained the complete knowledge and asked him: “What is that one should know beyond which there is nothing else to be known?” When Svetaketu could not give a proper reply, the saint-father pointed out a big peepal tree and asked his son to bring a seed of this tree.
Son Svetaketu: "Father, here it is"
Father, Uddalaka: Peel of the outer skin of the seed.
Son: "I have done it"
Father: "What do you see now"
Son: "I see small grains"
Father: "Gently peel off the outer skin of the grain also"
The son went on peeling of the outer layer till at last he found nothing in it.
Father: "What do you see now"?
Son: "Nothing"
Father: "The minutest seed part which you and I could not see clearly is the substance from which a gigantic tree is grown.
The father-saint, Uddalaka then said: “Though you say you could see nothing, please understand that it is from nothing the great peepal tree is formed. Though you see yourself as a mere individual, you have a great power within you, the power of Self-knowledge, similar to the power within the seed potential enough to become a great tree. Realize the infinite and innate power within you and your potential to rise up to the level of Brahman.
Anything that is external to our Self-knowledge is not real and should be discarded. When one remains conscious of his ‘being’ he finds his identity with Brahman, the eternal reality. When he experiences nothing other than himself and when the centre of awareness, “I am” persists at all times, he experiences “I am Brahman” (Aham Brahmasmi). As he drives away all thoughts and introspects within, he would find in the middle of the heart-cave, the pure Brahman manifesting as the Self, in the form of I-I. This is what the Upanishad declares: “You are That”. The Self reveals itself to that person who seeks Self alone to the exclusion of everything else. It is like the saying: “as you think so you become.”
"How can I be That?'
A Pundit was giving a discourse on Self knowledge. He said that the Self in every individual is the reflection of God. He referred to the great words of truth (Maha Vakya), "You are That", mentioned in Upanishad. Addressing the audience, he said: "You are the manifestation of God. There is divinity within you. In short, you are God yourself". At the end of the discourse, when the Pundit queried whether anyone in the audience has any doubt, a young man got up and asked: "Punditji, how can you say I am God? I have a personal outlook, I am a limited person in the domain of my body. I run after sense objects. I am deeply attached to my family. My knowledge on spiritual matters is very limited. When I have all these imperfections, how can I be compared with God who is all pervading, limitless, infinite and knowledge absolute? "
"Good question; I am glad you asked it", said the Pundit. He continued: "Rather than going by the literal meaning of the term ‘You are That’, you are expected to go by the implied meaning of the term which indicates that the core and the essence of our existence is the same. The power that unites us all is the same. It is only when you consider yourself separate, the difference of 'You" and "mine" comes. The Maha Vakya simply means that the power that unites us all, the underlying reality, is the same. By declaring "You are That", the Upanishad simply asks you to seek your basic identity with God. You are the part of the universal whole, the God. Remove the concept of duality from your mind and you would realize the full meaning of the term.
For those who still could not understand, the Pundit explained the dialogue that took place between the saint Uddalaka and his son, Svetaketu which appears in Chandogya Upanishad. Having studied all scriptures, the young Svetaketu went and stood before his father, saint Uddalaka. Saint Uddalaka wanted to test whether his son, Svetaketu has attained the complete knowledge and asked him: “What is that one should know beyond which there is nothing else to be known?” When Svetaketu could not give a proper reply, the saint-father pointed out a big peepal tree and asked his son to bring a seed of this tree.
Son Svetaketu: "Father, here it is"
Father, Uddalaka: Peel of the outer skin of the seed.
Son: "I have done it"
Father: "What do you see now"
Son: "I see small grains"
Father: "Gently peel off the outer skin of the grain also"
The son went on peeling of the outer layer till at last he found nothing in it.
Father: "What do you see now"?
Son: "Nothing"
Father: "The minutest seed part which you and I could not see clearly is the substance from which a gigantic tree is grown.
The father-saint, Uddalaka then said: “Though you say you could see nothing, please understand that it is from nothing the great peepal tree is formed. Though you see yourself as a mere individual, you have a great power within you, the power of Self-knowledge, similar to the power within the seed potential enough to become a great tree. Realize the infinite and innate power within you and your potential to rise up to the level of Brahman.
Anything that is external to our Self-knowledge is not real and should be discarded. When one remains conscious of his ‘being’ he finds his identity with Brahman, the eternal reality. When he experiences nothing other than himself and when the centre of awareness, “I am” persists at all times, he experiences “I am Brahman” (Aham Brahmasmi). As he drives away all thoughts and introspects within, he would find in the middle of the heart-cave, the pure Brahman manifesting as the Self, in the form of I-I. This is what the Upanishad declares: “You are That”. The Self reveals itself to that person who seeks Self alone to the exclusion of everything else. It is like the saying: “as you think so you become.”
