little-self

ls workshop) Glimpses In Reality…..34
Nitan and Shantnu took leave of Baba and proceeded towards downstream. Hardly had they gone some distance that Shantnu saw a hut, which consisted of only one room. It was made of stones and had a proper roof on four walls, with four big windows, opening on all sides. The roof, he noticed was, in fact covered by budding vines and the floor had been plastered with stream-mud. The room gave aesthetic environs and immediately after entering it, they engrossed in inquiry.
Nitan You know why Baba chose me. I will explain. I am a novice here and joined the group only recently. For the last twelve years, I have stayed in a number of Ashrams, Deras, Maths or any other place, which promised ‘God- Realization’. Not one of them came up to my expectations. All of them showed me the different paths but not the mansion of God. At last, I came here, perchance. Every thought, word, deed have concrete meanings. Still I have a lot many webs of doubts to clear. My mind is full of useless data which I am trying to weed out systematically, by the application of logic-intellect, whichever is handy and workable. But my biggest problem is my mind which is full of worldly knowledge, which has impaired my inner advancement. With your help, I will do better. Baba knew you could help me, thus he sent you with me.
Please let us start from the beginning as if we don’t know anything. With mutual help and encouragement, we can extend our thought process. That’s what Baba wants of us. During my stay here, he never held talks about God or Reality, the promised liberation or salvation. It is heavy dose, too heavy a thought for my consumption. Sometimes all seem easy and simple. But again I begin to wonder as if we are wasting our time and will never find the answers, rather the ‘Answer’!
Please bear with my impertinence, as I will be asking you too many questions, often very irrelevant ones, because with you I will be honest and would give vent to my suppressed feelings, doubts, with complete freedom i.e. without any inhibition.
Shantnu I appreciate your approach. Tel me Nitan what is your age?
Nitan I am as old as is our culture and civilization. Firstly I have been a veracious reader and read all the literature available in the libraries, bookshops or scattered on the payment. Secondly, I am the genesis of all the knowledge, intellect and wisdom that is transmitted genetically in the shape of literature, art, music or science: I am product of a rich inheritance and I am fully conscious of this.
Please, we should start on the assumption that we both have stored in us enough of worldly knowledge and now let us try to use only the relevant and weed out the junk. But before that tell me, what should be our aim?
Shantnu I am not sure about you, but mine is the Reality.
Nitan Pray, tell me what is Reality?
Shantnu So far I don’t know, though I know its basics.
Nitan What are those?
Shantnu What is of permanent nature is Real and that which is impermanent is unreal?
Nitan But everything is this world is impermanent, so this world too should be unreal.
Shantnu At this stage, it is not unreal but at some other level, we shall call it, unreal or impermanent.
Nitan But why is it not now?
Shantnu Because as of now, we don’t know the very basics of the creative world or of its objects!
Nitan How can we know that?
Shantnu By acquiring wisdom and becoming a wise, a Jnani.
Nitan Who is a Jnani (wise) or what is the difference between wisdom and knowledge.
Shantnu Knowing the properties of an object is knowledge, whereas to know the very basis of those properties is wisdom.
Nitan You want to tell, that the basis of the properties are permanent and the objects which contain them are impermanent.
Shantnu At this stage, we can assume this, as right now, we are assuming the limits of our knowledge are the creative world and its objects. But when we have found that stage, we will tag this world as impermanent. But that is a long way of.
Nitan Is it necessary for us to know all of this? And also, how do we know about the basis of the creative world?
Shantnu It is necessary for those, who want to know. We can know about the basis by first knowing about the creation.
Nitan And how we know about the creation.
Shantnu By knowing about the created!
Nitan That ultimately leads to the Self. Now I understand why Baba constantly refers about the Self?
Shantnu I am trying to know it. But the process is long and tiring. You know, there is so much literature available on this subject. Its each branch tells us different ways to know it. Not two are similar. An earnest inquirer is baffled when he is faced with so many paths. He is virtually rattled. But ultimately he makes his own trail and reaches the top. Try as much we may to follow one particular path, but growing through different environs of inheritor or local influences; one is forced to create one’s own individual trail. At the most we can take guidance from those personages who had traversed the path earlier, or we can follow a distinct philosophy.
But being an individual and separate entity, we can not be a carbon copy of others, so, each one creates his own individual philosophy, the way he understands and makes his own trail. It is like reaching a hill top and en-route there are no visible trails or foot prints left by the earlier pathfinders, so what one does; he makes his own way to the top. Though he may traverse the same path, but all the same he made a fresh trail, as there were no legitimate symbols (footprints) left behind by the previous voyagers. It is highly individualistic journey and each one is on its own.
Tbc…