ATMA BODHAM “KNOWLEDGE of the SELF” : 24 - Swami Sri Adi Sankaracharya
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Friday, May 29, 2020.
ATMA BODHAM “KNOWLEDGE of the SELF”
(68 Slokam-s in 9 Chapters)
Chapter - 5 : AN ERROR OF MISAPPREHENSION (Slokam-s 15 – 24)
Slokam-s 15-24 (10 Numbers.)
D. MIND IS RESPONSIBLE: (23-24)
Slokam: 24: As the “Essential Nature” of a Thing
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swabhaavah satchidananda nitya-nirmalat aatmanah."
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2 ushnshaityam agneh yathaa ataa; = coolness; and that of fire is heat; so too,
3 swabhaavah satchidananda = the nature of Existence, Knowledge and Bliss;
4 nitya-nirmalat aatmanah. = of Eternity and Purity, are of the Self or Atman.
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do not fight it, just ignore it. Just as the mind has its own nature, so too, the Self has its own nature which is the opposite. Why not try to be identified with the nature of the Self instead of the mind?
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3-4 This is what we are being made aware of here. Everything in creation has a
nature which it has to express. The Self has the nature of being eternal, pure, Existence
itself, Consciousness which is of the nature of Knowledge, and Bliss. These are not just
qualities that we are seeing in a role model outside, but they are of our very own Self.
By shifting our attention to that which is stable and unchanging within us, we can
break away from our mind, whose very nature it is to be changing all the time. This is the strategy which is being passed on to us in this slokam.
Sri Shankaracharyaji gives us three universally known objects whose nature cannot
change, and without which they will be something else.
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1-2 It is the Swabhava of these three objects to respectively be luminous, cool and hot. Without these qualities they will not be what they are.
The Self has the essential qualities mentioned above.
If we contemplate upon these qualities, we will get closer to the Self, and thereby feel these developing in us.
The Self can only be defined directly in terms of its essential nature, Satchidananda.
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NEXT :
Chapter - 6 : Slokam-s - 25-37 (13 no.) - “The Birth of the EGO”
A. FEATURES OF THE EGO: (Sloam-s 25-27)
Slokam - 25: The Fundamental Error – Birth of EGO
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To be continued ...
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Friday, May 29, 2020.
ATMA BODHAM “KNOWLEDGE of the SELF”
(68 Slokam-s in 9 Chapters)
Chapter - 5 : AN ERROR OF MISAPPREHENSION (Slokam-s 15 – 24)
Slokam-s 15-24 (10 Numbers.)
D. MIND IS RESPONSIBLE: (23-24)
Slokam: 24: As the “Essential Nature” of a Thing
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Slokam-24 :
"Prakaashah arkasya toyasya ushnshaityam agneh yathaa ataa;swabhaavah satchidananda nitya-nirmalat aatmanah."
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Translation :
1 Prakaashah arkasya toyasya = As the sun’s nature is luminosity; that of water is2 ushnshaityam agneh yathaa ataa; = coolness; and that of fire is heat; so too,
3 swabhaavah satchidananda = the nature of Existence, Knowledge and Bliss;
4 nitya-nirmalat aatmanah. = of Eternity and Purity, are of the Self or Atman.
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Discourse :
Knowing that the mind’s nature cannot be changed, we leave it to its own ways. Wedo not fight it, just ignore it. Just as the mind has its own nature, so too, the Self has its own nature which is the opposite. Why not try to be identified with the nature of the Self instead of the mind?
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3-4 This is what we are being made aware of here. Everything in creation has a
nature which it has to express. The Self has the nature of being eternal, pure, Existence
itself, Consciousness which is of the nature of Knowledge, and Bliss. These are not just
qualities that we are seeing in a role model outside, but they are of our very own Self.
By shifting our attention to that which is stable and unchanging within us, we can
break away from our mind, whose very nature it is to be changing all the time. This is the strategy which is being passed on to us in this slokam.
Sri Shankaracharyaji gives us three universally known objects whose nature cannot
change, and without which they will be something else.
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The Example: The Sun, Water, and Fire :
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1-2 It is the Swabhava of these three objects to respectively be luminous, cool and hot. Without these qualities they will not be what they are.
The Self has the essential qualities mentioned above.
If we contemplate upon these qualities, we will get closer to the Self, and thereby feel these developing in us.
The Self can only be defined directly in terms of its essential nature, Satchidananda.
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NEXT :
Chapter - 6 : Slokam-s - 25-37 (13 no.) - “The Birth of the EGO”
A. FEATURES OF THE EGO: (Sloam-s 25-27)
Slokam - 25: The Fundamental Error – Birth of EGO
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To be continued ...
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