Ones of Divinity – compiled from the talks given by Ratan Lal (1918-2006)
THREE STATES OF MIND
Self is realized by
refraining from doing anything and by being still.
Self-inquiry is
accomplished in the mind, with the mind, by the mind; seeking the place from
where it rises. The mind has three characteristics: dullness (tamas),
activity (rajas), and steadiness (sathwa). The identification of
the mind with these characteristics, including the last one, takes one away
from the experience of one's own Divinity. In a tank filled with di1ty water,
one cannot see the reflection of the moon. If the water is clean, and is in
constant motion, because of the wind, one will be able to see the moon as a distorted
image. If the water is pure and still, crystal clean, and calm, one will. be
able to see a perfect reflection. However, even in the last case, one will not
see the actual moon, but only its reflection. In order to see the moon, one
must lift one's eyes to the sky. The meaning of this illustration is that one
must exceed the three characteristics of the mind, as well as the mind itself,
in order to realize Consciousness, which is behind and beyond the mind. In this
act of turning the mind from the reflection to the source of light, the mind
loses itself. It may not happen the first time one tries to tum the attention
back, but at some point the ever-present Grace
will absorb the inquiring mind into itself. The non-emergence of the
"I" will be permanent.
Just as there are
three characteristics of the mind, there are three states of mind. These are
the waking, dream1ng, and dreamless sleep states. They are relatively real. In
the absence of mind, in the deep sleep state, does one see the world? The
answer is no. In that state, the mind is not absent. Creation is perceived when
the mind emerges during the waking state. From
the point of view of the Absolute, these three states are not the truth. Each
of these states excludes the other. The Absolute Truth, the substratum of everything,
is the permanent Divine Consciousness. All other
states of the mind appear and disappear in it.
One day, an exhausted
King Janaka fell asleep. During his sleep he had a: dream wherein he had lost
his kingdom and was roaming· the forest searching for food. Hungry and
exhausted as he was, he saw some robbers eating food. Out of a sense of pity,
they offered some to him. While he was getting ready to taste the food, a tiger
appeared and ate up all the food. At that moment King Janaka awoke and
found-himself in his palace, with lots of food served before him. He began
wondering whether the dream was true or whether what he was experiencing in the
waking state was true. He kept on repeating to
himself, "Is this true or is that true?" Both experiences were
so strong that he could not decide
which was. the true state. The priest and the ministers name
and tried to find out what was troubling the King, but none of them could
really give him a satisfactory answer. Finally, a young boy named Ashtavakra
was called. When he entered the court of the King, many sages, rishis and wise
persons had gathered there. When he appeared, everyone sitting in the court
began laughing at him because of his deformed body. Ashtavakra looked around
and said, "I thought I had come to an assembly of wise people, hut now I
know that you are all fools. You are laughing at my physical deformities, but
you know that I am not the body." Then Ashtavakra explained to King Janaka
that neither of the two states was real, since both are ever-changing and
inconsistent. The former was a "night dream" and the latter a "daydream."
What is Real is that which is beyond both these states. The only Truth is the
"I," which exists in both the dreaming und the waking state. This "I,"
which is omnipresent, is Reality, Truth. "I" persists even in
the deep sleep state. Thus, King Janaka got the answer to his question and
realized Truth.
There is a fourth
state, Turiya, beyond the three states of mind-waking state, dream
state, and dreamless state. Normally considered the state of Absolute
Consciousness, even this state is not the ultimate; here the mind witnesses the
mind. Beyond this lies the truly ultimate state - Turiyatita, the
unconditioned Awareness. Being the basis of everything it cannot be
objectified, perceived, conceived, or "understood." The best that be
said of it is that it can be "intuitively apprehended," but not to the
individuality which demands probing into everything, but to Itself, which is
our True Self.
Even when the world appears,
observe to whom it appears. Be aware of the substratum. Once the substratum is
realized, it does not matter if the world appears or disappears. The world,
being a manifestation of the Self, is extraneous whether the Self manifests or
not. Do not allow yourself to be distracted. Ask yourself, "For whom
does the distraction occur?" You tell me that the answer does not
arrive from your search inward. The inquirer is the answer. No other answer can
come. What comes cannot be true. Only "What is" is true. Only-That is
Real in which the world and the mind rise arid set.
In the deep-sleep
state, neither the mind nor the body exists. If this dreamless sleep state (Jagrat
Sushupthi) can be achieved during the waking state, it would be
realization. Plants are always asleep. Animals are both dreaming and awake.
Gods are always awake. Man has all three states. The three states are mutually
exclusive. True awareness, abiding in the Superconscious state (Turiya),
transcends them all. Turiya is the only real state. There is nothing to
be witnessed when the mind is absorbed in its source.
Relatively speaking,
the waking state is more important than the sleeping state. Only in the waking
state can one make an effort. In the dream state one cannot make any effort. In
the dreamless sleep state there is neither dream nor effort. Nothing is there.
In that state there is no mind or body; only the substratum that is one's real
existence, namely, the Consciousness, is present. The mind does not know that
Consciousness. The mind says, "I do not know as to whether
Consciousness is there or not." Consciousness, which is the Absolute
Reality, does not need the certificate of the mind to prove its existence. It
reveals itself only when the mind is merged into Consciousness.
The essence of the
problem in daily and spiritual life is that the mind has the habit of remaining
too much in the brain. Hence, in our worldly life, we do not function
efficiently. The brain is the seat of the mind. Ultimately the attention of the
mind, which is in the brain, has to be shifted from the brain to the Spiritual
Heart. The Spiritual Heart is located on the right side of the chest. This is
the seat of Consciousness. To begin with, one is told, "Hold on to the
Seeker." One is aware that when the Seeker is the sought, the Knower is
the known. The distinction between subject and object disappears. All these
dyads of' subject-object, knower-known, and seer-seen are the contents of the
mind. Spiritually, as also in the world, shifting our attention from the brain
to the Consciousness will help us to function more efficiently und impartially.
If we look deep within and try to hold onto the seeker, the one who is holding
on becomes that which is held on. When we go deep within, what remains is deep,
unbroken, and constant Consciousness. That is the experience of Oneness with
Divinity. Most of us find it very difficult to dive deep within ourselves,
disregarding all external things. We are still interested in something which is
not Absolute Truth. This is the difficulty of practicing Truth.
Knowledge has to be
practiced. Then it will become practical knowledge. Unfortunately, people often
lack practice as they give too much interest and attention to the external
world. That is why, in Vedanta, that which is seen is described as illusion (Maya).
Yet, illusion also rises from wisdom. Divine Baba gives an example. When wood
is burning, ash gathers around it. The ash emanates from the fire. After
emanating it covers the fire. The substratum, the Divine Atman, the unseen, is
covered by the seen. The mind tends to reject it, since this cannot ·be
perceived. That is not the logical reason to reject it. Suppose you are looking
at a building. You cannot see its foundation. The foundation is surely
there. Without a foundation there cannot be any building. So, first of all you
haye to develop faith and understand that the basis, the foundation, the
support, is the Reality. Without life and Consciousness, can the translator
translate? Can the listener listen? Even though the Divine cannot be seen with
the physical eyes, it does not mean that It does not exist.
When someone has
practiced what the speaker has practiced, what does he experience?
There must be a
knower who has the curiosity to know about that. Moreover, this knower's
station is in the brain. Subdue this knower. If you keep on following the
knower's interests, then there will be no end to mental games. The mind cannot
know Atman. Even this curiosity cannot arise without the basis that is
Divinity. Everything rises and sets in this basis of Atman, which itself
neither rises nor sets. The Divine Atman is impersonal. Beyond these words, one
cannot explain it. One has to intuitively experience the Atman for oneself. It
can be experienced only when the inquirer himself disappears.
Since ancient times,
the sages have explained the experience of the Atman in many sets of words. One
set of words is more appealing than the other set of words to some people.
Words may differ, but the experience of Divinity does not change. When you arc
ready, it will reveal itself. To whom will it reveal itself? It will reveal
Itself to Itself. It will not reveal Itself to the mind. Before experiencing
it, however, there is the matter of practicing inquiry. Without making an
effort to practice, one cannot experience Atman. The practice is possible only
in the absence of thoughts. During the interval between two thoughts, the Self
is experienced. In that space, thoughts are not there. The thinker is not
there. The objects that persons think about are not there. Only you, as your
true Self, are constantly there. That's the experience of the Self or God.
Somehow, by any
means, the personal “I” has to he dropped. Its presence creates wrong know
ledge. It generates a sense of separation from God, a sense of separation from
our true existence. All our lives we go on wandering aimlessly under the false
illusion that "I am Irene, Maria, Victor." You say to
yourself, "I am so-and-so." This so-and-so is limiting the
limitless. It is creating a sense of limitation called the personal
"I." This personal "I" has to be cut out. Without doing
that, experiencing the bliss of Divinity is not possible.
What is experienced
between two thoughts is the Reality. Thoughts cannot be there without
Consciousness. Consciousness is, and can be there, without thoughts.
Consciousness is never absent, whether the world is there or not. Somehow we
think that thoughts are more important than their basis, Consciousness. The
sages have said that the Self is realized not by doing but by refraining from
doing, not by thinking but by being still. Hence, stillness of mind is highly
recommended.
Please explain more
about the three states of mind and the relationship between gunas and
Consciousness?
The mind with its
characteristics and its states appears· and disappears in the ever-present
Consciousness. There is no relationship between self-evident Consciousness and
ine1t matters. That is why Divine Baba says, "Atman is everything that we
see the world, people, etc.; nothing is apart from its reality. The great sage
Sankaracharya said, "The world is unreal; Atman alone is real."
The world is a superstructure based on Atman. As an independent entity, the
world is unreal. It is not the purpose of Vedanta to describe the world as real
or unreal. Vedanta says only that the world is a myth. A myth is something that
appears and disappears. When it appears it is real. When it disappears, as also
happens in the deep sleep state, it is unreal. The aim of realization, the
state to be achieved, is to bring about J agrat Sushupthi, which means to be
awake to God and to be asleep to everything else. That state can be
accomplished in the waking state only through practice. It is the highest
state-to be conscious of Consciousness alone and nothing else.
Are there levels in
Consciousness?
Are there levels of
light? Sunlight constantly shines, no matter what comes in its way. Levels are
only in the mind, not in its basis. Some minds are ripe. Some minds are not.
The basis remains unaffected by the levels of the mind. This question
has been asked several times by various people. They say, "my
Consciousness, your Consciousness," etc. Consciousness is
Consciousness. It is not mine or yours. We may say "big river, small
river, or big space, small space." But river is river and space is
space. The fact of space or river cannot be changed. You go to a river with a
small vessel to bring some water. In a small vessel, you can collect only a
little water. If you take a bigger vessel, you can carry more water. Similarly,
the river of Consciousness remains unaffected. It is unchangeable, permanent.
It is the capacity of the vessels that differ.
Therefore, understand
that there is no such thing as a higher and a lower Consciousness. The only
difference lies in the maturity of the mind. A mature mind will be a better
reflection for the Ever-pure Consciousness. It is not a question of mind
reaching a higher Consciousness; it is a question of removing the tendencies of
mind that hide and distort the experience of Consciousness as it is.
What is the purpose
of doing Japa, So-ham, and Self-inquiry? Can we mix all these practices?
Rather than dig many
shallow wells, dig one deep well. Similarly, instead of mixing practices, do
one intensively. Make the mind steady and controlled. Mantras, Soham, and Japa
are all means to help steady the mind. Do anything that suits you. Instead of
doing nothing, do something. These activities cannot be graded in any way.
Their only aim is to make the mind balanced and give peace to the mind. Adopting
whatever activity gives peace to the mind.
Self-inquiry or
devotion will come later. Surrender will come later. First, control the mind.
That is important. If we look (pointing with a hand) we can see a boy standing
there and playing with a stick. Obviously, he is not listening to what is being
said here. Someday he will also take interest. It takes longer to make wet wood
burn than to make dry wood bum. Gunpowder will catch fire in an instant.
Everything takes its own time, in the world or otherwise. How many steps did
you take to come to this place? How many steps will you take to return to where
you came from? Do not feel discouraged just because it takes one person longer
than another to get results of some kind. It depends on one's evolution.
All Mantras are good.
The object is to transfer one's attention from the world to God. It is up to
each person how he does it. With great enthusiasm, one learns to swim quickly;
with less enthusiasm, it takes longer. Self-inquiry is possible only after the
mind becomes steady. The goal should be to make the mind abide in the Self. You
can do it anyway you like.
