Light on the Drama Theatre
Divine Life
Society Publication: Chapter 10- The Philosophy of
the Panchadasi by Swami Krishnananda
The story of the Jiva may be
said to be rooted in its consciousness of duality. This is its bondage, its
movement towards the ‘other-than-itself’, and its freedom consists in its
resting in the essence behind all empirical consciousness. Bondage which has
been caused by non-discrimination can be removed only by correct
discrimination. Hence it is the duty of everyone to correctly understand the
true relation between the Jiva and the Paramatman.
The Jiva is, for all practical
purposes, the notion of the ‘I’, the principle of individuality. The Jiva’s
instrument of action is manas, the mind, or the Antahkarana, and its activity
is in the form of its various transformations, both within and without.
Inwardly, there is the notion of the ‘I’, and outwardly there is the
apprehension of “this-ness” in regard to an object. This idea in regard to an
external object, which is a general activity of the mind, is diversely
interpreted by the senses in accordance with the special functions which they perform,
such as seeing, hearing etc., but there is a third essentiality illumining both
the doer and the deed, the witnessing Consciousness within, the Sakshin, as it
is called, which instantaneously illumines the doer or knower, the mind and its
modifications (Vrittis) and illumines also the various objects outside. This
illumination is made not in succession, but simultaneously.
The Sakshin, or the Witness
Consciousness illumines the Chidabhasa, the Vrittis of the Antahkarana, and
also the objects, at the same time. We have variegated sense-perceptions which
are different from one another, but these are brought together in a single
Consciousness, which knows all these varieties at once and illumines all these,
like a lamp fixed in a stage or a drama theatre.
The lamp in the stage
illumines, equally, the director, the actors, the musicians, as well as the
audience, and it shines even if no one exists there. This is its specialty. The
Sakshin within, the witnessing Consciousness, illumines the ego, the mind, and
the objects, all alike, and it shines even when all these subside, as in the
state of deep sleep. It is on account of the shining of the Sakshin, or the
Kutastha, that the mind appears to have a light of its own and performs
different functions. Here, in the analogy of the theatre, we may compare the
ego to the director of the play, the senses to the musicians, and the objects
to the witnessing audience. In this enactment, the mind is the actor which
dances to the tune of the senses, the musicians. The Sakshin or the Witnessing
Consciousness is comparable to the lamp which illumines all things in the
stage.
The lamp in the stage
illumines all things equally, from all sides, and shines also when there are no
things to shine upon. In a similar manner, the Sakshin is a steady existence
unmoving and unaffected and illumining everything inside and outside. This idea
of an inside and outside arises on account of our judging things from the point
of view of the body, and not from the point of view of the Sakshin itself. We
say that the objects are outside because they are outside the body, and
similarly we say that the ego is within, because it is inside the body. The
standard of judgment is the body in all our conceptions, and our statements are
involved in this conception of inside and outside.
The mind, which is within,
moves without through the avenues of the senses, again and again, and this
activity of the mind is falsely attributed to the Sakshin, and then it is said,
“I see”, “I do”, and so on. Just as a beam of light proceeding from the Sun and
passing through an aperture in a house may appear to be moving when a hand is
passed or crossed over it rapidly, though there is no such motion in the light,
so the Witnessing Consciousness appears to be actually active and undergoing
changes etc., while these activities and changes belong to the intellect and
the mind alone, due to their juxtaposition with the Witnessing Consciousness
and on account of the transparent nature of the intellect and the mind, as
there is a preponderance of Sattva here.
There is a reflection of the
Consciousness in the Antahkarana, and the whole Samsara begins and has its
roots in this confusion between the Antahkarana and the Atman, whereby the
luminous character of the Atman is superimposed on the Antahkarana, whose
character is transformation without self-consciousness, and, conversely, also,
takes place a transference of the changes of the Antahkarana to the unchanging
Atman. Thus, the Sakshin, which is always at the same place without any
movement, appears to move and act when it is falsely associated with the
psyche.
We cannot even say that the
Sakshin is in any place, because it transcends space, time and individuality.
We cannot say that it is everywhere, strictly speaking, because of there being
no spatial conception in it. The Atman is neither inside, nor outside, nor
everywhere. All these are the notions of the Jiva in terms of its
spatio-temporal experiences. The Atman is the Witness of even the concepts of
space, time and individuality, or objectivity. It is inexplicable by words and
unthinkable by the mind, and ununderstandable by the intellect. In one word, it
is trans-empirical. There is no way of grasping it by the senses or the mind.
It is known only when all attempts of grasping cease.
When there is perfect
equilibrium of the mind, a stillness born of Sattva, due to the absence of
activity born of Rajas, the Atman shines by itself. Self-knowledge is its own
proof and does not stand in need of any external proof. If, however, it is
found difficult to completely cease from all psychic activity, then the other
alternative would be to recognize the presence of the Atman as the unaffected
Consciousness accompanying all cognitions and perceptions, as the light
illumining all these, and yet apart from all these. This will lead, gradually,
to a meditation on the real ‘I’ within. (Verses 1-26)
Excerpts from:
Light on the Drama Theatre - Chapter 10- The Philosophy of
the Panchadasi by Swami Krishnananda
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