Mandukya Karika Lecture 142 on 21-February-2024

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

Practically, we are coming to the end of Gaudapada's explanation of the Mandukya Upanishad. This is the last and fourth chapter. We are in the 78th Karika or verse. What is the essence of this? The shlokas we have, the verses that we have already covered, that Gaudapada wants to drill into our minds. The fact that we are pure Brahman, we never had any birth. Therefore, everything associated with birth, like growth etc., this is called Shadurmi. The sixfold changes do not exist. But with our present experience, we are in this world. We feel that there are innumerable beings, not only beings but non-living things also, which we are experiencing, living as well as non-living. One thing common about both these is their objects. Objects mean the target of my experience. Therefore, following the golden teaching of Vedanta, whatever I experience is not me. I am something separate.

So this body-mind complex is that prism through which we experience what we call the waking state, dream state as well as dreamless, deep sleep state: Jagrat, Swapna and Sushupti. And we are convinced that this is the reality. But Gaudapada wants to remind us, there must be a definition of reality. Whatever doesn't change at any given time, that means that which is beyond time. That means time is equated with change. And beyond time means changeless, which means eternal. And that alone is the definition of truth, trikala abadhitam satyam. But that is the truth. That is from the highest point of view. But as of now, we are having three states continuously, one after the other. All these three, not only are changing one after the other, they contradict each other. What we think is real in the waking state is not real, a totally different reality in the dream state.

And the absence of even the concepts of reality and non-reality in the dreamless state. So naturally, we are experiencing. And whatever we are experiencing depends upon the experiencer. And the experiencer is totally different. Now this is the truth. But that is a goal. We have to attain to that goal. So the first step is to practice that whatever I am experiencing is not me. The second step is that all these things, they are totally dependent upon me. This is a marvellous truth.

Supposing there is a person, he loves another person. And he thinks, 'I am getting so much joy, happiness, pleasure from this other person.' Now is the other person giving this happiness, or is it the false notion in the mind of the experiencer? And even we can understand that sometimes we don't enjoy happiness, sometimes downright unhappiness from the same object, sometimes terrible disgust, terrible what we call disassociation. We wish to run away from these things. What does it prove? It proves that if I think there is happiness, I get happiness. If I think it is full of sorrow and suffering, I get suffering. Just as in a dream, whatever we think becomes a reality.

Apply the same thing to everything that is experienced. If we have a positive idea and the object remains positive, so long as we can maintain that positive attitude, then what is the truth? The truth is me, which is unchanging. So what is the trouble? Why do I go on swinging from one extreme to the other extreme in the form of sometimes happy, sometimes unhappy? Because the mind is the root cause. The mind thinks, 'This is very beautiful, very enjoyable, let me enjoy.' And the same mind, after some time, thinks, 'This is disgusting, it doesn't give me happiness, let me be as far away as possible from it.' And that is what happens. This analysis of this experience, especially in our dream states, is very useful in our day-to-day, what we call waking state.

Of course, when we enter into the deep sleep state, there is neither happiness nor unhappiness, a profound state of darkness, ignorance. But it gives a sort of happiness because we neither experience happiness nor unhappiness, etc. There is no even subject-object division. Dichotomy is absent there. True. But we do not know who we are. Therefore, all the three states change, contradict, and therefore, I alone am the truth.

And if this is true, then what is my reality and what are these three things? Everything that changes is time-bound, space-bound, and object-bound, limited by time, space, and causation. What is the cause of this causation, of this limitation of these three? The mind. The very constitution of the mind is time, space, and causation. And when we can transcend the mind, all these problems will automatically disappear. And then what would be my state? This is the experience of sages who went beyond the mind, beyond time, space, causation. And they said that is the permanent state. That is the only real state. And practically, it is indescribable, except whatever we experience in these three states is not that. This is called negativity. That is, first we negate everything. Then we negate the very instrument by which we negate all these three states. And then it is possible to go beyond the mind. This is the essence. And for that, we have to practice spiritual disciplines. And the essence of all spiritual disciplines is how we can control our mind. This was exactly what Patanjali was hinting at, Yogaha Chitta Vrutti Nirodaha. When we go beyond the power of the mind, the limitation of the mind, that means beyond time, space, causation, what remains is our own true nature. And that is why he said, Tatha Brushtu Swaroope Avasthanam, that we remain as ourselves. Once a person knows who I am truly, thereafter, nothing, no illusion, no delusion can ever bind him. That is the essence of this, not only what we discussed earlier, but what is going to come practically to the end of this Mandukya Karikas.

In our last class, we have been studying the 78th shloka:

बुद्ध्वा'निमित्ततां सत्यां हेतुं पृथगनाप्नुवन् ।

वीतशोकं तथा काममभयं पदमश्नुते ॥ ७८ ॥

buddhvā'nimittatāṃ satyāṃ hetuṃ pṛthaganāpnuvan |

vītaśokaṃ tathā kāmamabhayaṃ padamaśnute || 78 ||

78. Having (thus) realised the absence of causality as the Ultimate Truth, and also not finding any other cause (for birth), one attains to that (the state of liberation) which is free from grief, desire and fear.

Again, this is to instill into our minds that in our state of bondage, constantly, these three are going on. First there comes desire, then there comes fear, then there comes grief. This is a beautiful analysis. If there is a mind, if you can imagine a mind without any desires, then there will be absolutely no fear. The true reason for fear is twofold. Two causes are mentioned. Why do we fear? What are those two?

First of all, we may lose what we already have: wealth, health, beauty. Not just "may," but definitely we will lose it. Even though we do not actually think in those lines, when we are not aware of a thing, we have already lost it. Of course, in deep sleep, a rich man does not know that he is wealthy, a young man does not know he is young, and a prisoner about to be executed next morning has absolutely no fear at all. So, this is the first cause of fear: whatever we have, we might lose, and definitely whatever can be lost will be lost. Murphy's law is there—something can go wrong, and it will definitely go wrong. If there are many reasons for change, everything will happen at some point in time or rather sometimes all at the same time.

What is the second reason? We have so many unfulfilled desires, and somehow we hope against hope that we might be able to fulfill them and thereby derive some happiness. And fear is always lurking: I may not get what I am expecting to get. This beautiful discrimination between what I have and what I am expecting to have—both can be lost. And why should they be lost? Because whatever is separate from me will be lost. I am separate from the body, so the body can be lost. I am separate from the mind, so the mind can be lost. But what I am, that can never be separated from me. And therefore, there is no question of losing it.

And what is the nature of this "I"? We are profoundly ignorant of it. That is where the scripture comes in and tells us. Actually, the scripture teaches two things: the unreality of the world and the reality of oneself. Even though we don't know about the self, we need to know about the self. The scripture is telling us that our true nature is this. Somehow, it is justified. But we are arrogant in our thinking. We believe, "I am in the world. I know the world." Yet, we behave as if we are profoundly ignorant of the world. What does it mean? It means that even though the world is there, first of all, continuously it is changing. From birth until death, my body is changing. My mind is changing. So every single object in this world is continuously changing. As I mentioned earlier, time means change. Therefore, if everything is changing, do I accept that everything is changing? What it means is, now I am happy, but it will change. Then I will be unhappy. Then that also will change. I am born, that will change. Death is the final change. Birth, growth, youth, middle age, old age, disease, decay, and death. So everything is changing. Do I realize that fact? So if somebody loves me, I think it is permanent that I am going to be loved. And if I am loving somebody, permanently I am going to love that person. But such a notion is the most horrid notion in the world, the most delusional notion in the world, because everything is changing. A simple example: a hot prepared meal right now may be very delicious, but keep it for a few days, it starts decomposing itself. And it is no longer desirable, but not only disgusting, it can be terribly poisonous also. Are we accepting that? No. We hope to love somebody and to be loved by somebody, and it will be eternal and permanent. Even though every day, whenever we think of any other object, already our love for a particular object is completely forgotten. If we can keep it in mind, then we are liberated souls. But unfortunately, bondage comes with the mistaken notion that everything is permanent. I will be living forever and I will be loving forever. I will be loved forever. I will be happy forever, etc., etc. So we have to awaken, but we do not understand this truth. So the scripture has to tell us what is the reality about the world and what is the reality about my own self.

This is what Gaudapada repeatedly emphasizes in the 78th Karika: Buddhva, having thoroughly understood, not merely intellectually, but realizing and knowing this as the permanent truth, the eternal truth. What is it? ā'nimittatāṃ satyāṃ, It is the birth of this world. That means the birth of my body, the birth of my mind, everything related to birth. There is no cause because the theory of causality, cause and effect, always go together. If there is no effect, you cannot think of a cause. If there is no cause, you cannot think of the effect. If one goes, the other disappears. Therefore, once having realized through spiritual practice, hetuṃ pṛthaganāpnuvan, and there is hetum, which means the cause of birth or rebirth. So besides the theory of causality, there is no other theory or cause for birth. That means, in simple words, there is no world. It is ajati, never born. We are only thinking it is born, just like we see many dreams, many marvellous things, and having not obtained any other cause for the birth of this world. And what we have been thinking, that one cause is that God has created this world, is maintaining this world, and he will destroy this world. Even that also we transcend. Having attained to that state, there is no birth. That means, I have no birth. What happens? He attains ashnute. He attains. Attains what? Padam. That particular state. Padam means a particular state. What is the state qualified by? First of all, vitashokam, there is no grief. This is called the state of blissfulness, absolute bliss. Tatha kamam. And when a person is very happy, he will not desire anything. This is a marvellous truth. Whether it is small happiness or big happiness, people rarely notice this psychological truth. What is it? Suppose you are eating a sweet, maybe a very ordinary sweet, but there is nothing called ordinary and extraordinary. If you think the extraordinary is ordinary or you may think the ordinary is extraordinary and when you are very hungry, even the most ordinary food happens to be extraordinarily attractive. So, this person, he will not have any desire so long as he remains in the state of happiness. This is an astonishing fact. Maybe the happiness of what is called chewing gum or chocolate or a lozenge you are putting in your mouth and you are enjoying it. So long as there is that experience of happiness, you will not desire a second thing. This is okay, but it would have been better if I had got something else or this is first class. So, it would be nice if I can have a second one. All these sorts of thoughts can come only when that happiness comes to an end and after that the mind thinks. That means the mind will not think anything else, it just experiences, though for a short time, that bliss. That is called Vithashokam. That is a divide of any type of unhappiness and in that state, Kamam Najayate, there would be no desire for anything and then because desire is the root cause of fear.

As I just now, as we discussed that what I may lose what I have or I may not get what I want, such a state will not have when a person transcends the false belief called causality. Then Abhayam Padam Ashnute, he attains to his own true state which is divide of grief, divide of desire, divide of fear. In human language, this is the highest description anybody can give. There is no other way. So, by describing the state of liberation to be a state of one's own existence in which grief, desire and fear have no place at all and then Gaudapada discreetly indicates a state of experience, completely detached from all our false identifications from our body, mind, intellect. And then what is the cause of our grief? Sri Ramakrishna says, quoting a Bengali saying, "Pancha Bhutair Bhande, Brahma Pude Kande," Ishwara falling into the net of the five elements, he weeps. That means what? Ishwara forgets, God forgets, I am the God. He might think I am a dog, reverse. So, but when the knowledge comes, dawn of knowledge lies beyond the choking states of these illusory phantoms and their false threats. And the same thought is carried on in the 79th Karika.

अभूताभिनिवेशाद्धि सदृशे तत्प्रवर्तते ।

वस्त्वभावं स बुध्वैव निःसंगं विनिवर्तते ॥ ७९ ॥

abhūtābhiniveśāddhi sadṛśe tatpravartate |

vastvabhāvaṃ sa budhvaiva niḥsaṃgaṃ vinivartate || 79 ||

79. On account of attachment to the unreal objects, the mind runs after such objects. But it comes back (to its own pure state) when it becomes unattached (to objects) realising their unreality.

All these Karikas are, I would say, gems of truth. Even though the language I wish would be a little more simpler. If it was Shankaracharya, he had the talent much better than his grand guru to put these ideas in much, much better ways. I mean the very language is very present. Most marvellous, beautiful, poetical language, but expressing the same meanings. So, why do people suffer? This is the translation of the 79th Karika. On account of attachment to the unreal objects, the mind runs after such objects. But it comes back to its own pure state when it becomes unattached to objects, realizing their unreality. What is the essence of the 79th? Our deep attachment to objects. What do we mean by deep attachments? Are we really, when we analyze what we call our concept of this world, our concept of attachment or even detachment? I love, I hate. And both are direct causes of bondage. If you say, I hate this person, it doesn't mean you are free. You are in greater bondage. Why? Because your hatred makes you forget your God, yourself and makes you think only that particular person. Whether you are fearing, whether you are desiring, whether you are running after some object, any attachment to this world and the world is called an object. So, the whole world is an object, but it changes its forms into myriad ways. So, Abhuta Abhinivesha. Bhuta means what? Unreality here. An unborn world. So, there is a, like you know, you go to a magician's show, magic show and you are telling everybody, I am going to a magical show. And by that you imply 100% correctly that this is just an appearance. There is no reality. But supposing you forget your own understanding and you become, oh, that rabbit, the most marvellous rabbit I have seen, I would like to possess it. Because we have to extend our imagination. If a magician can bring out a rabbit, is that the only thing he could do? Can he bring out a beautiful young woman or can he not? When it is, is it possible to bring out a very talented, good-looking young man? Absolutely. Anything. A rich man? Yes. A poor man? Yes. A happy man? Yes. An unhappy person? Yes. A ferocious tiger? Yes. If a magician has that power of bringing rabbits, he can bring out anything. And in our Vedantic terminology, Maya is called the magician. So, everything that we experience is magic, including our friends, our enemies, what we call a desirable object, undesirable object, etc.

So, what happens? We are deeply attached. And that is where my Gurudeva, Yathishananda Maharaj used to point out that if I dislike something, if I hate something, that hatred is greater bondage than attachment itself. Why? Because we think I hate this thing, so I am not attached to it. In fact, my mind thinks it is more attached in the sense, the mind runs after this hated thing, thinks more and more and more. Not only that, the more we think what we don't like, the more our hatred grows, the more the strength of the attachment grows. So, this is the truth. So, we are attached either positively or negatively. And because of this Abhinivesha, that is, what is the root cause of attachment? Our body and of course our mind. sadṛśe tatpravartate. A person who is terribly attached to any object in this world, both in the form of like and dislike, and he has no choice but to behave according to his liking or disliking. What does it mean? It means if he likes, he will run towards that object, he wants to possess that object, he wants to be united with that object. But if somebody dislikes, he wants to run away. But because the attachment to that hatred is in the mind, wherever he runs, even if the object is a billion miles away, but as if it has possessed him like a ghost, we have to be extremely careful. So, we are all under the magical show of this, what we call Mahamaya. So, therefore, we have no choice. We are forced to behave as we are behaving. That is why we are born, we grow and we run after certain things. We try to run away from certain things and this phenomenon happens again and again and again. This is called sadṛśe tatpravartate, helplessly we are carried by the stream of our own delusional thinking. vastvabhāvaṃ sa budhvaiva, But a time will come by good actions done in many lives by the grace of God, by the grace of good people cultivating holy company, etc. vastvabhāvaṃ sa budhvaiva , I am running after phantoms. Really such a thing doesn't exist at all. niḥsaṃgaṃ , And then he becomes detached, disassociated and he will turn away. What does turn away mean? All this time he is thinking that my welfare, my happiness, my meaning of my life, everything depends upon something outside me. But now he understands everything depends upon something which is within me, not which is without me. That is outside me.

And then what does he do? He will turn. He becomes restless like a musk deer trying to find out the intoxicating fragrance that is emanating from its own navel. niḥsaṃgaṃ vinivartate, That means what? He gives up his attachment. That means he understood through discrimination, through viveka and then viveka is naturally followed by vairagya. That means when once we come to know this is poison, it is a death to me. We don't need to practice what we call dispassion. Automatically the mind will turn away from that if we understand properly. This is what he wants to say. Why are we so much clinging to this world or why is there so much of strong bondage on account of our attachment to the unreal objects? But we will never be attached if we think it is unreal. But we think it is very real. Therefore the mind runs after such objects. But a time will come when it understands what I am running after is just mere phantoms of the brain and it comes to its own pure state. Then it goes on searching inside. Then it understands I am the cause of my own misery and then slowly it purifies itself. It experiences higher states and one day it understands I am the self, I am Brahman etc. So these two phenomena, detachment from the external objects, attachment to one's own truth of the self, both take place. Sri Ramakrishna had put it so beautifully as a man is progressing towards the east, he need not make special effort to distance himself from the west. Automatically it takes place. So Gaudapada is telling here that our mind is running after the objects and we are being pulled by the mind because whatever the mind says we are only, you stand and we stand. The mind says sit, we sit. Now you sleep and then we sleep. You experience waking, we experience the waking. Mind says now dream and we go into the dream state and then it says now you stop thinking and we go into the deep sleep state. But slowly by experiencing negative things for a long time we become awakened and then our very nature will change. So this is called the arising of discrimination. By discriminatingly understanding that we should not rely upon any sense object because I understand their nature, the mind slowly but steadily comes away from its wanderings. Sri Ramakrishna, how beautifully he is illustrating these truths, again from the Upanishads only. Remember Ramakrishna's illustration of a bird. Once a bird happened to sit on a ship which was anchored in a particular place and it went to sleep. But meanwhile while it was sleeping the ship, that anchor is lifted off and slowly it started going deeper into the sea. By the time the bird woke up it was seeing only water all around. Then it flows to the east and after some time it doesn't see the land, it comes back. Similarly it flows to the south, west, north. Nowhere it doesn't get any rest. Then it just comes back, sits on the mast and then remains completely restful, unperturbed.

What is that mast? The truth hidden within each one of us. The body, mind are traveling in this ocean of the world, and that is compared to the ship. A ship is meant for travel like a train or airplane or a bus or anything, but at the same time, we are attached to that. But once we come to know that through the help of the world, there is no end to the world. You enjoy anything, billions of more things will come. But once we are tired of searching and then we do not find permanent rest, then we come back, we turn our attention inward and then we see. This beautiful example we get in both Brihadaranyaka and Chandogya also. So, therefore, what is the way out? Gaudapada is advocating discrimination as a remedy for all the problems of this world. What is discrimination? That the world is unreal and the world means our own body and mind. But within this body and mind, there is the Self, and we have to turn our attention to it. And this is what he wants to convey in the 80th Karika.

निवृत्तस्याप्रवृत्तस्य निश्चला हि तथा स्थितिः ।

विषयः स हि बुद्धानां तत्साम्यमजमद्वयम् ॥ ८० ॥

nivṛttasyāpravṛttasya niścalā hi tathā sthitiḥ |

viṣayaḥ sa hi buddhānāṃ tatsāmyamajamadvayam || 80 ||

80. The mind, thus freed from attachment (to all external objects) and undistracted (by fresh objects) attains to its state of Immutability. Being actually realised by the wise, it is undifferentiated, birthless and non-dual.

Again, the beautiful way of putting it is that a person who is practicing discrimination will understand that every object in this world only furthers our grief, intensifies our unhappiness, and pulls us deeper and deeper into the net of illusion and delusion. So, slowly we have to give up. Give up what? We have to give up excessive attachment but, most importantly, the understanding that for me to be happy, I don't need to go anywhere. All the happiness is within me. This is nivrttasya.

So when the mind chitta vritti nirodha. This nivrtti word here is equivalent to chitta vritti nirodha. So when we go on practicing, not allowing the mind to think various things but only to think one real object which is God, then what happens? Apraurttasya. So the mind now is arrested in its wanderings. It doesn't want, and at the beginning, it is forced not to go here and there, but after some time when the understanding dawns, then what happens? It doesn't want to go. It has understood it is poison for me. Then what happens? Nischalahi tatha sthithi. Sthithi means that state of attainment. What is the nischala? That is, it becomes completely motionless. Chala means motion. Nischala means motionless. It attains, and this is beautifully given in the Bhagavad Gita. It is giving the comparison. There is a lamp, an oil lamp, and it is kept in a windless place, and then there is no flickering at all.

yathā dīpo nivāta-stho neṅgate sopamā smṛitā

For a controlled mind, this is the beautiful analogy. Just as an oil lamp kept in a completely windless place goes on giving light steadfastly not flickering even to the least. That is the state of the mind.

Vishayaha sahi buddhanam tat samyam ajam advayam. Vishayaha sahi buddhanam.

This is the state of who? Buddhana, awakened people, realized souls. This is the state, non-natural state. Of course, at the beginning, they have to work very hard but, in the course of time, through practicing again and again they attain to this state. That is why it is said it may take thousands of births.

So that is why,

shanayi shanayi uparamet buddhya dhruti grihitaya atmasastham anakritva na kinchid apichintayet.

So

बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान्मां प्रपद्यते |

वासुदेव: सर्वमिति स महात्मा सुदुर्लभ: || B.G, 7.9.19||

bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate

vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ

It may take a long time but what does it matter? Let it take because our attempt is to go beyond time and therefore the more concentration we have the less we become aware of the passage of time. Therefore this is only when we are not attempting concentration we fear oh how long it will take. If you are suffering from such kind of fear it may take many many births. Right now come to Varanasi, live here and do not move from here. You will attain to that state.

So there are a few very rare awakened souls. These awakened souls are called Buddhas. In fact, Gautama's name after realization is called Buddha. One who has awakened from the world of delusion, one who has awakened to the reality of his own true nature which is Atma, a self-realized soul. What happens? The same mind which was so much distracted earlier becomes absolutely still. 'Samyam' means still and then it realizes 'ajam'. I was never born even though it is a thought. It is expressed in the words of language but whenever we are studying the scriptures, remember our mind is functioning and the nature of the mind also can help us. If my mind is calm and quiet, full of positive thoughts, complete faith in the scriptures and in the realization of the teaching of our own guru, then it will not become agitated. Then it understands I am really 'ajam', unborn, 'advayam'. There is no second. Samsara means world means second but there is no world. I am alone. 'Ekameva advityam', one alone. So the mind thus freed from all attachments to any object and undistracted by any fresh objects attains to its own state of immutability. Immutability means changefulness. Immutability means a non-changing state. Being actually realized, there were people, there are people, there will be people who realize this state and what happens being actually realized. So that state is undifferentiated, birthless, and non-dual. So a mind thus separated from its attachments and maintained away from the objects of its distractions attains to its own state of changeless purity. So Gaudapada is here giving a straight and pointed hint that everything depends upon the mind and mind is of two types as we have seen in the Amrutabindu Upanishad. One is called Shuddham, another one is called Ashuddham and further hint is given that the mind alone is the root cause of both bondage and liberation. First of bondage and later on of liberation and a controlled mind is itself the very nature of our own self. That is what Patanjali is telling. Sada Dhrushta Swaroope Avasthanam. So there were men of wisdom. They attained to this state. It is not mere theory. They declare that the experience beyond the frontiers of the mind and intellect is the experience of the supreme reality, absolute, unborn, non-dual, and undifferentiated and we have to have faith. I have seen Swami Vivekananda declared at the Parliament of Religions. I have really experienced that state and that state is being further described here in the 81st Karika. That reality which is free from birth, which is free from sleep and dream reveals itself by itself. For this Atman is from its very nature ever luminous. What is the state? What is the description of the realization of the realized souls as we have been discussing? Can it be really described? No. But language can point out the way and that is being done here in this 81st Shloka or Karika. So what is the nature of my own nature? The nature of the Atman, the nature of the Brahman, Ajam is unborn, Anidram, and it is what is called sleepless, Aswapnam, and dreamless, and Prabhatam Bhavate Svayam. It is absolutely like when the sun starts rising in the east then all darkness instantaneously, automatically vanishes. We don't need to say the sun is going to rise so you will have to disappear like that. No, not at all. Prabhatam Bhavate Svayam and Sakrud Vibhata once the Atman starts shining and when does it start shining? When all darkness is destroyed. What is the darkness? Our mind which is constituted of time, space, and causation. When we rise above this particular nature of the mind which is of the nature of limitation then what happens? The light shines all by itself. We don't need to say now I have removed the obstacles, you shine and a beautiful example is given elsewhere.

Imagine that there is a lighted lamp. It is covered by a thick pot and not one ray of light is coming out. Everything is completely dark. Now what is our attempt? We have to first of all slowly remove the pot. As we start lifting the pot, first a little gap is there, very very minute gap and then the light comes. With the help of that light, I know how to lift the pot more and more and more and then when the pot, when we succeed in completely removing that pot then you don't need to say oh light now I have removed the pot now you start giving light. Automatically that very light helps us to realize that state. This is called dharma means Atma here. As I said sometimes this Gaudapada, I wish he used straightforward known words instead of Atma, he uses this word dharma. Dhatu svabhavadaha, by its own nature, Atman by its own nature, sakrudvibhadaha, always is shining. All that we need to do is make an attempt to remove the obstacles, that's all. What happens? Svayam prabhatam bhavati, the light itself starts as if early in the morning, as if the sun is rising and automatically all darkness disappears.

What is the nature of the self? Ajam, oh I thought I was born. Anidram aswapna, these are the technical words. Nidra means sleep, swapna means dream. So earlier we have seen, just I am reminding you, though I should not remind you, so we have three states. So the waking state and the dream state, we suffer from nidra and swapna. What is nidra? We do not know what is our true nature. This absence of one's own true nature is called sleep. Just as when a person is deeply asleep, he doesn't know where he is or what others are doing. And then swapna means dream. So both the waking and the dream states are mind-borne. I like this person. Person is okay. I like, I dislike, these are all creations of our own mind. This is called dream state. So in both waking and dream, we suffer both from what is called imaginary understandings as well as complete absence of our own true nature. But in deep sleep, we only suffer not from dream, but from nidra. That's why it is called nidra. What is nidra? That is, I don't know who I am, but I am not suffering from diffusion of things. That is why half of the bondage is disappearing there. This is what technical language we call it avarana shakti and vikshepa shakti. For those who are familiar with these terms, avarana shakti is what is called the covering up of the truth. Vikshepa shakti means the scattering power of the mind. In both waking and dream, we suffer from concealment of our true nature as well as we understand everything that I am not the self, nothing is the self, everything is different from everything else. But when it comes to deep sleep, I only suffer from one power of Maya that is called I don't know who I am, but at least I don't see anything else. So this is what happens when a person controls his mind. He realizes his own self and then he wakes up to the truth that I am unborn and I know what I am and I do not imagine because there is no mind at all and this is called prabhatam. The morning has dawned, the dawn has come and once I come to that state, then I realize it is not something else, it is my own true nature. Very beautiful way of understanding which we will discuss in our next class.