Being established in Brahman
Divine Life
Society Publication: Discourse 13 Commentary on the
Bhagavadgita by Swami Krishnananda
The great sage who is
established in Brahman neither rejoices on acquiring pleasant things, nor
grieves when coming in contact with unpleasant things because he sees with an
equal eye the substances that are the components of pleasant things as well
unpleasant things.
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| Credit: Diagram from www. peakusability.com.au |
The pleasant and the
unpleasant are actually not things; they are reactions set up by our
personality in respect of certain compositions of things. Thus, things are
actually neither good nor bad, neither beautiful nor ugly, neither pleasant nor
unpleasant.
When we are detached totally
from connection with the objects of sense, when the senses do not see any
meaning in the objects outside and therefore do not pull the consciousness out
in the direction of objects, the energy of the person increases and the Self realizes
Itself. Even the perception of an object without any element of love or hatred
is called a wrong perception from the point of view of yoga because all
perceptions, even if they are so-called right perceptions, are partial. For
instance, this is a building and it is really a right perception; we do not say
it is an elephant. To say that it is a building and not an elephant is indeed a
right perception, but it is not a right perception from another point of view
because the limited operation of the mind of an individual characterizes
certain shapes as ‘a building’, while actually, internally, we will find that
which is in one thing is also in another thing.
Therefore, one who is totally
unattached to things outside – bahya-sparseshv asaktatma – he rejoices
in himself and enjoys a bliss which is Brahman itself. The universal Brahman is
in the Atman of every individual. Space is universal; but the same universal
space, when we see the space only inside the vessel, may appear to be limited
to a little vessel. The space inside the vessel is called pot-ether – ghatakash.
The pot-ether looks very small because it is limited by the walls of the pot,
and the bigger space – which is mahakasa – seems to be larger than the
little space inside the pot. Thus, there appears to be a difference between the
universal akasa, or universal ether, and the individual ether that in
the pot – but really there is no such difference. The space has not been
divided into two parts inside and outside the pot . The same consciousness is
within us and also outside us.
Thus the within-ness of ours,
the selfhood that we enjoy, the bliss that comes out of the detachment of
consciousness from objects of sense, is the same as the bliss of Brahman – the
Universal Reality emanating, rising up from our so-called little-self. The
Universal Reality rises up into action the moment the so-called little-self in
us withdraws itself from contact with things and does not concern itself with
anything that is external.
Any joy that comes through
contact of one thing with another thing cannot be regarded as real joy. There
are five types of contact with external things: contact through the eye,
contact through the ear, contact through the nose, contact through the skin,
and contact through the tongue. The joy that we get by this kind of contact is
an unreliable joy. It is a deceptive experience that we are passing through,
and we wrongly come to the conclusion that we are experiencing happiness
because this kind of contact appears to be pleasant in the beginning and breeds
sorrow later on.
Even at the time of the
enjoyment of a sense object, we are under an illusion, and it is not a real joy
that we are experiencing. Why do we feel happy when we come in contact with a
mango or a cup of delicious kheer or any pleasant object? The reason is
that when the mind is not in contact with any sense object, it is restless in
itself, and it goes out in search of its own food in the form of objects. The
mind that is not in contact with objects moves out in search of those objects
which it finds pleasant to contact. When the mind moves in that way, the
consciousness of the Atman, or the Self, also moves together with the mind –
just as electricity flows through a wire. Wherever the wire is, there is also
electricity. Wherever the mind is, the Atman also goes, as it were, due to the
attachment between the mind and consciousness that is caused by karma;
and when the contact takes place with the consciousness, the mind feels that
there is no further necessity to move outside in search of an object because
the object has already come into possession. The mind ceases to move outside
and comes in contact with the self inside. Immediately there is a joy. The joy,
therefore, has come from within us. It has not come from the object, yet
foolishly we think that the object is painted with bliss and we are the abodes
of sorrow, which is not true. The reverse is the case. That which has a
beginning will also have an end because our pleasures, which are contact born,
begin with the contact itself. Therefore, they shall end when the contact
ceases.
Our relationship with this
world is fragile. The Mahabharata tells us that just as two logs floating on
the surface of the ocean may come in contact with each other due to the
prevailing wind, we come in contact with each other and become relatives,
friends, a community; but if the wind blows in a different
direction, the logs move away from each other, as if they have no
connection.
The coming in contact of
beings, the friendship that we have, the community that we establish humanly,
are all false in the sense that they are conditioned by the winds of cosmic
powers which breed contact; and when these winds blow in a different direction
we are separated, and then we say that somebody died. Hence, contact with
objects has a beginning and it also has an end. Therefore, all joys that are
born of contact are poison in the end, though they look like honey in the
beginning. Wise people do not rejoice in objects of sense.
We cannot be free from the
desire for external things unless we are united with the Universal Being.
Unless we have an element of Universality in our experience, it is not possible
for the mind to be free from the objects of desire.
We would not mind losing the
whole world through sense contact if the Absolute is realized in our conscious
experience. Only a person who has realized his universality can be free from
desire and anger; nobody else. Blessed is that person who is able to restrain
himself from desire and anger.
When we have the ocean itself
within us, we do not run after a cup of water. Who is blessed in his own self,
who delights in his own self, who rejoices in his own self, who takes rest in
his own self, who finds life in his own self – such a person has attained
Brahman.
Yogis who are
self-restrained persons, who are free from kama and krodha –
whose minds are united with the Self, to such people Brahman is here and not in
some distant place. It is just here and now.
The Lord says, “Realizing that
ultimately I am the enjoyer and the actor, all sacrifices are directed towards
Me, all activity in this world is motivated by Me. All austerities, all tapas
is possible only on account of My grace because I am the Lord of the three
worlds and the Lord of all the fourteen worlds. I am the dearest friend of all people living
in any realm of existence.” Nobody except God can be called a friend. Knowing
this truth, one attains peace.
Excerpts from:
Discourse 13 Commentary on the
Bhagavadgita by Swami Krishnananda
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