The eye can’t see what the mind doesn’t know!

 

This morning began the same way as yesterday. I was awake at dawn. Venus was clearly seen high in the eastern skies and from the front yard even Jupiter was seen against a brightening sky. I hurriedly completed a few surya namaskars before taking out the bike. Once on the road my eyes began to search for Venus and Jupiter at the expected spots. No matter how much I looked they were not to be found.

 A thought came to my mind. “You don’t know where to look ! “

This was a moment of revelation! 

At night, in hours of solitude, God was perceivable all around me. A formless presence, yet unmistakably felt. That’s because temporarily I was forgetful or less conscious about my bodily presence. Now that I’m more aware of my physical identity, God has vanished around me, or so it seems! 

And then it suddenly occurred to me!

I don’t know where to look! 

The entire scene before me….. the road, the houses in the neighborhood, the cars, the trees, the sky, the birds, the clouds, the occasional people seen taking their morning walk…..all this is nothing but a manifestation of the God whose presence I’m familiar with in my solitude! 

A few minutes later, just like yesterday, again I could witness the sunrise above the eastern mountains. Again the glowing sun was much more reminding of God than the other things I mentioned above.

And then the mind recalled a few verses from the Bhagwad Gita.

Verses 27 and 28 from chapter 13:

In both these verses Shri Krishna asserts that He is present in equal measure in all creation, in all beings. 

समं सर्वेषु भूतेषु तिष्ठन्तं परमेश्वरम् |
विनश्यत्स्वविनश्यन्तं य: पश्यति स पश्यति || 27 || 

samaṁ sarveṣhu bhūteṣhu tiṣhṭhantaṁ parameśhvaram
vinaśhyatsv avinaśhyantaṁ yaḥ paśhyati sa paśhyati

In the first verse He adds that even when all beings perish He remains intact. Those who understand this truth that God is the imperishable element in an otherwise perishable creation have understood the essence of creation.  

समं पश्यन्हि सर्वत्र समवस्थितमीश्वरम् |
न हिनस्त्यात्मनात्मानं ततो याति परां गतिम् || 28|

samaṁ paśhyan hi sarvatra samavasthitam īśhvaram
na hinasty ātmanātmānaṁ tato yāti parāṁ gatim 

In the second verse He argues that those who have realized that God is equally distributed in every part of creation including himself does not bring harm upon himself. The implication here is that such individual applies himself consciously to a good path, remains vigilant about avoiding any thoughts or actions that might cause undesirable consequences. He thus attains to a supreme state. ( This topic perhaps calls for a little more discussion in a future post). 

The fact that the sun was perceived more intensely as a divine entity than the houses or roads does not contradict the fact that divinity is equally distributed in all things. It simply implies that individual perceptions can be influenced by prior conditionings. We tend to recognize divinity in saintly people. We experience sacredness in nature. And see God in the innocence of kids. Artists and musicians of exceptional talent make us believe in God. At a particular stage of intellectual and mental maturity these perceptions hold true. Above and beyond this stage, divinity can become perceptible to the heart even in the dimmest and most ordinary objects or circumstances.

विद्याविनयसम्पन्ने ब्राह्मणे गवि हस्तिनि |
शुनि चैव श्वपाके च पण्डिता: समदर्शिन: || 18||

vidyā-vinaya-sampanne brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
śhuni chaiva śhva-pāke cha paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśhinaḥ

A person of God realization sees a cultured, educated Brahmin, who has utmost humility despite his knowledge, in equal light as a lowly caste, ignorant man, or even as another species like a cow, dog or elephant. Thus every being, irrespective of social class, social standing is weighed with equal reverence, dignity and recognition. 

This is not simply theoretical for the God realized person. It trickles down to his core thinking and behavior due to first hand perception of God’s omnipresence and his personal surrender and devotion to God.

Despite these precious and impactful revelations, why do old notions of seeing each living being in a different light return to consciousness?

This question made me recall yet another verse from the Gita. Chapter 5, verse 15. 

नादत्ते कस्यचित्पापं न चैव सुकृतं विभु: |
अज्ञानेनावृतं ज्ञानं तेन मुह्यन्ति जन्तव: || 15||

nādatte kasyachit pāpaṁ na chaiva sukṛitaṁ vibhuḥ
ajñānenāvṛitaṁ jñānaṁ tena muhyanti jantavaḥ

Here the answer to my doubt lay in the second half of this verse. ( in the first half, Shri Krishna has mentioned that God has nothing to do with individual person’s actions, achievements or consequences of those actions, whether good or otherwise). The God principle entrapped within the confines of prakriti, that is the manifest portion of God, mechanically executes the actions influenced by the gunas of Prakriti ( and what is mechanically executed eventually becomes habitual.) This happens because that individual part of divinity, packaged into the components of Prakriti ( the 5 elements and 3 gunas) is lacking Dnyana, knowledge of the Absolute God, the changeless divine principle. That knowledge is covered by ignorance. Hence the person continues to act senselessly. 

Knowledge covered by ignorance!

 Like a blanket! 

Indeed we have become so used to wrapping ourselves under this seemingly cozy blanket of our age old idea or understanding of ourselves and the world, we have become comfortable under it. We don’t want to throw it away and wake up to a new day, a new understanding, a new vision.

This is essentially the tamasic variety of sukha( happiness or joy)that Shri Krishna talks about in chapter 18, verse 39! 

यदग्रे चानुबन्धे च सुखं मोहनमात्मन: |

निद्रालस्यप्रमादोत्थं तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् || 39||

yad agre chānubandhe cha sukhaṁ mohanam ātmanaḥ
nidrālasya-pramādotthaṁ tat tāmasam udāhṛitam

Tamasic kind of comfort or happiness is one that deludes us. It is damaging from start to finish . But we are not ready to acknowledge it of course because we are deluded! Thought of discarding the ideas of duality makes us uncomfortable, insecure. Because that has been our reality as far back as we can remember.  That is also the reality that is asserted by everyone around us! Except the saints, of course! 

This morning’s revelation brought so much sense and understanding of whatever I had studied all these years from the Gita. For the first time I realized that this book is very much a mystery novel! It has many secrets tucked into it that unravel slowly if we persist in our study. Truly magnificent and life changing. No book I have read comes anywhere close to the complex beauty of this text. 

Finally the verse that I really needed to hear was from chapter 4, verse 42! 

तस्मादज्ञानसम्भूतं हृत्स्थं ज्ञानासिनात्मन: |
छित्त्वैनं संशयं योगमातिष्ठोत्तिष्ठ भारत || 42||

tasmād ajñāna-sambhūtaṁ hṛit-sthaṁ jñānāsinātmanaḥ
chhittvainaṁ sanśhayaṁ yogam ātiṣhṭhottiṣhṭha bhārata

Arjun is urged to decisively destroy his doubts, thoughts and convictions born out of ignorance with one swift motion of the sword of Knowledge! Once you catch hold of knowledge don’t linger on old notions rooted in ignorance. Move on to the new reality. 

Relied on a selfie in the evening to accompany this post. It is the opposite end of the day. The sun has gone down and soon the starry sky will shine in its glory. 

Saree is a simple Handloom cotton weave I had picked from a Khadi Bhandar store in Nagpur a few years back. Paired it today with a Pochampally ikat blouse.