Soul - The true self

When we ask the question, “Who am I,” we begin our quest for spiritual knowledge.  This is the first step.  The inscription on the temple of Apollo at Delphi says Knothi Seuton, or “Know Thyself”.  It is said that once Socrates was pondering over philosophic truths and walking absent-minded on the street, when he bumped into someone.  Annoyed, the man asked, “Can you not see where you are walking?  Who are you?”

Socrates replied nonchalantly, “My dear friend, I have been pondering over that question for the last forty years, and have still not found the answer.  If you have any tips to offer, do let me know.”

The Bhagavad Gita says in this regard:

“To understand the difference between the body and the knower of the body is wisdom.”

The body is not you; it is like a house in which you reside, or like clothes that you wear.  You are the eternal soul seated within it.  The body is made from matter, and hence it is perishable, but you, the soul, are Divine, and hence immortal.  Neither is the soul within us, nor are we in the soul.  We are the soul that is seated within the body.

 

The Vedic scriptures state that the atma, or soul, resides in the heart.  The Upanishadic sutras state that the soul resides in the region of the heart.  However, it is not physically bound to the heart.  Often people ask that if the soul resides in the heart, what happens in the case of a heart transplant.  Does the soul get extracted from the body along with the heart?  No, if a heart transplant takes place, the soul continues to reside in the same location, despite the change of heart.

“Consciousness” is the symptom of life that is manifested by the soul.  It is not the soul itself; rather, it is a quality of the soul.  This is just like heat and light, which are manifestations of the fire, but are not the fire themselves. Everything that exists is verily the energy of God.  However, it is not all consciousness.  Matter is “insentient” or devoid of consciousness, while the soul is “sentient” or possessing consciousness.  This is an important distinction between the soul and matter.

Apart from having consciousness itself, the soul also has the ability to impart consciousness to matter, when it associates with it.  Hence, the insentient matter of the body is made sentient by the presence of the soul.  As long as the soul resides in the body, the senses, organs and limbs, all display signs of life.   Upon death, when the soul departs, the body is dead matter once again.

Units of 'Time' mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavad Puran; You cannot even imagine!

Time occupies a pivotal role in the functioning of this Universe. Its importance is often understated and lost in clichés such as ‘Time and tide waits for no man’. We all know that most events in our daily life occur on the basis of time. From the ubiquitous sunrise to the birth of a baby, everything hinges on the passage of time. There is no aspect in this cosmos that does not rely on time.

Every major civilization developed a method of measuring time at various points in history. The hourglass and the sundial were amongst the most ingenious of solutions. Modern science has given us the atomic clock, powered by nuclear energy and is said to the most precise time keeping device in history. Yet, plotting the movement of the sun, the moon and the stars has always provided the most reliable methods of measuring time. Using these tools, man has always tried to guess the age of this Universe, the starting seconds of the Big Bang and even guess the time when ‘Time’ began!

The Bhagwatam gives us an accurate account of time measurement. Starting with the smallest unit of time, they reveal a journey of unimaginable proportions, leading us all the way to the age of the Universe.

The smallest particle in the Universe is a Paramanu. It is invisible to the naked eye and is a sub-atomic particle. It is impossible to divide, dissect or destroy a Paramanu. A Paramanu retains its original state / personality till it combines forces with another Paramanu.

2 Paramanus             =          1 Anu (an atom)

3 Anus                        =          1 Trasarenu (visible to the naked eye, in sunshine)

3 Trasarenus             =          Truti (8/13,500^th of a second)

The time taken by the Sun (or its rays) to travel through 3 Trasarenus is called a Truti.

100 Truti                   =          Vedh

The Chaitanya Charitavali reveals that 300 Trutis make a Bodh and 3 Bodhs make a Lav.

3 Vedh                        =          1 Lav (8/45^th of a second)

3 Lav                           =          1 Nimesh (8/15^th of a second)

3 Nimesh                   =          1 Kshan (1.6 seconds)

5 Kshan                      =          Kashta

15 Kashta                   =          1 Laghu (approx. 2 minutes)

15 Laghu                    =          1 Ghadi (also called Nadika)

2 Ghadi                      =          Muhurth (approx. one hour)

6 or 7 Ghadi              =          Pahar (approx. 3 to 3 1/2 hours)

The length of a day and the night keeps varying according the solstice in which the Sun is currently in. Hence, the no .of hours in a day keep changing, depending on whether it is a long day or a short day.

8 Pahars                     =          1 Day and 1 Night (a full cycle of 24 hours)

7 Days / Nights         =          1 Saptah (1 week)

15 days                        =          1 Paksh

A lunar month is divided into 2 Pakshas, of 15 days each. They are called Shukla Paksha (light half) and Krishna Paksha (dark half). It depicts the passage of time between new moon and full moon (waxing or shukla paksha) and then between the full moon and the new moon (waning or krishna paksha).

2 Pakshas = 1 month

2 months = 1 Ritu

3 Ritu = 1 Ayan

2 Ayans = 1 year

Uttarayan and Dakshinayan split a year into two equal halves.  Uttarayan, known as the ‘Summer Solstice’ in the western world, marks the transition of the Sun from south to north (Tropic of Cancer), in the Northern Hemisphere. The beginning of Uttarayan is celebrated as Sankranti, in January and generally ends in July.

Dakshinayan, popularly known as the ‘Winter Solstice’ for the people of the Northern Hemisphere, marks the beginning of the transition of the Sun from north to south, towards the Tropic of Capricorn.

The two Ayans make for one full movement of the Sun from, north to south and then south to north. 1 human year constitutes a day and a night for the Devtas (Demigods). Uttarayan is the day and Dakshinayan is the night.

Endless cycle of time

 Yuga

The Vedas mention that creation and destruction is a cyclic phenomenon and eternal. The basic classification of time has 4 yugas.

Satyug              =          1,728,000 years (4000 Devta years)

Tretayug          =          1,296,000 years (3000 Devta years)

Dwaparyug     =             864,000 years (2000 Devta years)

Kaliyug            =             432,000 years (1000 Devta years)

The passage of each yug denotes a progressive degradation of human, moral and spiritual values. People in Satyug are very pious and spiritually evolved. Violence, crime and other negative characteristics are almost non-existent. The same cannot be said of the people in Kaliyug (the current age that started about 5100 years ago).

A full cycle of 4 yugas takes 4,320,000 years (4.32 Million years) to complete. This is known as Chaturyugi or Chaukdi. The ‘transition period’ between two yugas is known as Sandhya and Sandhyansh. At the beginning of every yug, the passage of a defined number of years is called Sandhya and the transition period at the end of that yug is called Sandhyansh.

This cycle of 4 yugas is also known as one ‘Divya Yuga’, or the passage of 12000 Devta years.

Manvantar

When 71 cycles of the 4 yugas are complete, a manvantar is said to have passed. A manvantar takes approximately 306,720,000 years or 308.57142 million years to complete. A partial destruction of the Universe takes place at the end / beginning of every manvantar.

Kalp

The passage of 14 manvantars is called kalp. This constitutes 1 day of Lord Brahma’s life!

The total time elapsed in a kalp is approximately 4,320,000,000 years or 4.32 Billion years. This is equal to 1000 Chaukdis or 1000 ‘Divya Yugas’.

An equal amount of time (4.32 Billion years) constitutes Lord Brahma’s night. When each day in Lord Brahma’s life comes to a close, the earth planet and the three celestial adobes (Bhu, Bhuv and Swah) enter a transition stage. The Sun and The Moon cease to exist. This is called as Kalp Pralaya. The complete Universe as we know it merges into Lord Brahma during his night. When the night (4.32 Billion years) passes and a new day dawns, Lord Brahma manifests the Universe in exactly the same stage as it was before they merged into his form.

1 year of Lord Brahma’s life is 3,110,400,000,000 years or 3.11 trillion years.

100 years of Lord Brahma’s life equals 311,040,000,000,000 years 311. 04 trillion years.

The lifespan of Brahma is identical with the lifespan of this universe. After 100 years of Lord Brahma’s lifespan, the complete Universe is dissolved. This event is known as Maha Pralay, when nothing except the Supreme God exists. Everything merges (not destroyed or terminated) into the Supreme and lies in a dormant state till God manifests them again to begin the endless cycle of life and destruction.

What time is it now?

According to the Vedic scriptures, we are now in the first day of the second half of the life of Lord Brahma (he is now 50). Fifty years of Lord Brahma’s life is called Parardh.

Within this current day (kalp) of Lord Brahma, we are in the seventh manvantar (of Vaivasvata Manu), in the 28th cycle of the 4 yugas. In the 28th cycle, we have completed the 3 yugas, Satyug, Tretayug, Dwaparyug. Kaliyug started just over 5000 years ago.

In this way, it is clearly established in the Vedas that life and time ride on an endless and eternal cycle of yuga, manvantar and kalp. There is no end.

If God bestows causeless mercy then why should we do Sadhana

The question is simplistic, because surrender itself means to come to a state of doing nothing.  We can understand this from the example of a newborn baby.  A newly born baby does nothing, so her mother does everything for her.  When she grows into a small child, she begins doing some of her tasks on her own, and so her mother lessens her responsibilities.  When she grows further, she begins doing all her works herself, and her mother stops doing everything.  

   This example is illustrative of the process of surrender.  As long as we possess the pride of performing our actions, God declares us as the doer, and we have to suffer the consequences of our actions according to the Law of Karma.  When we surrender this pride, we become non-doers and God becomes the performer of our every action.

            तेषां सततयुक्तानां भजतां प्रीतिपूर्वकं।

              ददमि बुद्धियोगं तं येन मामुपयान्ति ते।। 

(Bhagavad Gita)

   According to this verse from the  Bhagavad Gita, the Supreme Lord takes the responsibility for the welfare and liberation of surrendered souls.  Therefore, if simply by giving up the pride of doing we are liberated from material bondage and rewarded with Divine Bliss, is this not the Causeless Mercy of God?  

   If we were required to do something to become beneficiaries of His Grace, then we could have had occasion to complain.  However, what effort is involved in surrender?  It is the process of giving up everything to attain everything.  As long as a bird holds a piece of flesh in its beak, other birds chase it and do not allow it to rest in peace.  The moment the bird gives up this piece of meat, i.e. surrenders everything, it attains peace.  In the same way, surrender involves no effort at all.  Without any effort if we receive Divine Grace, then that Grace is definitely causeless.  

   There is the famous incident of Draupadi’s surrender.  When Draupadi was being disrobed in the assembly of the Kauravas, she first counted upon the protection of her husbands.  When they remained silent, she relied upon the pious elders present in the assembly - Dronacharya, Kripacharya, Bhishma, Vidur etc. - to help her.  When they too failed to take any step, she clenched her sari between her teeth.  Yet, Shree Krishna did not come to her rescue.  Finally, when Dushasan pulled her sari with a jerk, it slipped from her grasp. Now she surrendered herself totally to Shree Krishna, for she no longer had any faith in the protection of others, nor was she relying on her own strength.  Immediately Shree Krishna offered complete protection, and she was saved.  Shree Krishna declares in the Bhagavad Gita: 

     सर्वधर्मां परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज।

      अहं त्वां सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिषामि मा शुचः। 

   “O Arjun!  Abandoning all concerns of religiosity and irreligiosity, simply surrender to Me.  Then I, who dispense justice to all, will cease to be a mere judge.  Bestowing My Grace, I will pardon all the sins of your innumerable past lives, and grant you liberation.”  This is the immense Grace of God. This verse is the essence of Vedas and  Upanishads.

   In the world, even if a criminal surrenders himself to the law, he is made to suffer punishment for his past crimes.  But God is so merciful that once you surrender to Him, He not only forgives all past deeds, but also bestows His Divine Bliss for the rest of eternity.  If this is not causeless Grace, then what is?  

 Jagadguru Kripaluji Maharaj simplifies this by an example of a washer man. If a washer man were to clean your clothes and not charge you for it, you would say that he has done you a favor, even though the clothes could become dirty again.  In comparison, when we surrender our mind and intellect to God, He cleans them forever, and that too, without any charge.  In fact, even if we desire, we can never pay the price for God’s Grace.  What we receive through Grace is Divine wealth, while what we give in return is only imperfect material goods.  What need does God have for our material goods anyway?  So, if God bestows His Grace upon our surrender to Him, it is His causeless mercy.

The difference between our Mind and Brain

The mind is a subtle machine provided along with the body to the soul. It is such a machine that continuously generates thou

ghts, feelings, ideas, perceptions, and stores knowledge and memories.

The brain is not the mind. The brain is the hardware that the mind uses for its functioning. Someone's brain may get damaged, but the mind may still continue functioning normally. This shows that the mind is distinct from the brain. Again, in the case of plants, they have no brain, and yet they have a mind. Experiments have shown how they respond to the moods of the gardener and speed up or slow down their growth in response. This illustrates that even plants possess a mind.

The brain is made from the gross elements earth, water, fire, air, space. On the other hand, the mind is subtler than these gross elements. The Bhagavad Geeta states:

bhumirāpo nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhireva cha
ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛitiraṣhṭadhā
(Bhagavad Gītā 7.4)

"Earth, water, fire, air, space, mind, intellect and ego, are various constituents of My material energy, Maya." Here, Shree Krishna has enumerated the mind as separate from the five gross elements. Modern science has some idea of the nature of the gross brain, but is yet to comprehend the functioning of the subtle mind.

The mind is thus distinct from the brain. Nevertheless, in figure of speech, often when we say "the mind," it refers together to the mind and the brain.

Our miseries are for our own good

Suppose a child does something wrong and his mother slaps him, does this action of the mother make her merciless? No. This is, in fact the grace of the mother that she is trying to correct her child from the very beginning. If we get a boil in our body, we go to doctor. The doctor operates and removes that boil, giving us immense pain. Now, does that mean the doctor is merciless? No. The doctor is giving us treatment. He is getting rid of our pain.

Similarly, we have forgotten God since eternity and have attached ourselves to the objects of this world and are full of material vices like lust, anger, greed, etc. If we do not get miseries in this world, we will never think of God. We are suffering so much, and still we do not surrender to God. Think, if there was no suffering in the world, then who would have remembered God? Initially, these miseries of the world make many people walk towards God. Therefore, the miseries of the world are not the hardheartedness of God. In fact, it is His Grace in disguise. Saint Kabir said:

"Sukh ke maathe sil pare naam hiye te jaye,
balihari wa dukh ki jo pal pal naam rataye"

When we endeavor elevating our soul, we will realize that material comfort does not contribute to self-growth. Hardships push us towards higher consciousness. Swami Vivekananda said, "Life is the continuous unfoldment of a being under circumstances tending to press it downwards." Circumstances will create difficulties, and will press us downwards. But when we face them, we will be forced to enhance our abilities and understanding, and in the process we will grow internally.

So, when we implement this perspective, we will see the Grace of God in all situations, and even more in adverse circumstances.

Knowledge Vs Devotion

The topic “Gyan vs Bhakti” is one of the most intensely debated topics in Indian philosophy, and followers of advaitvad, dwaitvad, visishtadvaitvad, vishuddhadvaitvad, achintya bhedabhedvad, all hold strong opinions on either sides of the topic. It has been very skillfully debated here by those who have participated in the discussion.

It is difficult to do justice to this topic in brief, but I must contribute something, since I had initiated this discussion. Gyan and Bhakti are definitely inter-related. For example, if someone gives us a piece of jewellery, and we have no knowledge of its worth, you will have no love for it either. But if we come to know that the gold is 24 carats, and the diamond studded in it is worth a million dollars, we will immediately develop immense love for our new possession. Similarly, as we get knowledge of the glory of God and our relationship with Him, our devotion towards Him will also increase. So true knowledge definitely leads to bhakti.

And as we engage in bhakti, God seated within the heart gives us deeper and newer realizations. Thus, bhakti leads to knowledge. Gyan and bhakti are thus intimately inter-related: gyan increases bhakti, and bhakti increases gyan.

However, Gyan yog, or the path of gyan, is different from this. It suggests that the soul is itself God, and so by situating oneself in the knowledge of the true self as atman, one will attain liberation. Such knowledge is incomplete without the understanding that soul is only a tiny fragment of God, that it has an eternal relationship with God, and that it needs to surrender to God, to attain His grace.
Consequently, the meditational styles of the gyanyogi and the bhakti yogi are quite different. The bhaktiyogi meditates on the Supreme, All-powerful God, and relates to Him in a personal form as his ishta dev. However, the gyan yogi considers meditation on God as inferior, and aims to still the mind by meditation on the breath, or the eyebrow center, etc. Such meditation aimed at merely stilling the mind is not only exceedingly difficult, it is also bereft of the grace of God.
The mind is a product of the material energy of God, and it cannot be conquered without His grace, no matter for how many ages we may endeavor. Hence, the writer the the Yog Darshan, Maharashi Patanjali, has mentioned in three places in his brief treatise: Ishwara pranidhati – for success in meditation and for conquering the mind, surrender to God. Bhakti thus becomes essential in the path of gyan as well.

Theres is yet another kind of gyan, called shabdik gyan, which means dry intellectual knowledge, without concurrent practice. Such gyan, without realization leads to pride, and does more harm than good. It has thus been criticized by the scriptures.
We must thus acquire the right knowledge of our eternal relationship with God, and then endeavor to put it in practice. That knowledge will then help us increase our devotion, and devotion will increase our knowledge, and knowledge will increase our devotion, and devotion will increase knowledge, and so on.