Aitareya Upanishad Lecture 04 on 13 August 2023

Full Transcript(Corrected)

We are studying the Aitareya Upanishad, one of the most marvellous Upanishads. Mostly, this Upanishad starts with a Srishti Krama. What is the point? The point is that if the cause is Atman, the Srishti, the effect must also be Atman. What is the meaning of creation? Why did God create it?

In this world, we find something very peculiar. When a person is enjoying this world, he never thinks of anything else. He always gives credit to himself. "I have worked hard, and I have earned it. It is my divine right to enjoy it." But when the opposite happens, a person starts thinking, "Who is responsible for my suffering? I don't want to suffer at all."

Here, the Upanishad is going to tell us that Srishti is not created, never meant either for happiness or for suffering. What then is it meant for? Both happiness and suffering, enjoyment and pain, they are meant only for one purpose. What lessons can we learn and get out of this place? Both are necessary, like two wings of a bird. A bird can never fly with only one wing. Perhaps it can, but it is so much more difficult. But it is impossible without the wings for a bird to fly. Without legs, man cannot easily travel.

Now what is the point? Creation is meant for us, so that we can experience the world, and we can learn the lessons. Very often I tell people that one of the best scriptures in the world is newspapers. You may be surprised. Thakur used to hate newspapers because it contains worldly things. But if we have the eyes of wisdom with one attitude, we should study anything, be it scriptures, be it newspapers, anything with one purpose. What is this going to teach me? What lessons can I learn?

Scriptures also can tell us, but very often we are surprised. The scriptures tell us how to look at the world. For example, you are born, and you grow up; one day you will die. Anything that is born is going to die. We know this; we experience it; we see it every day, but we don't learn our lesson. That is the way the scripture is trying to tell us because the scripture not only tells us that God exists, we have come from God, the entire creation has come from God, and our goal is to go back from where we have come. 'Mano chalo nija nikethane,' O mind, let us go back to our own abode, our abode, our birthplace. It is only God, but that fact we do not know. That is what the scriptures tell us. That is why they are called Apaurusheya. Apaurusheya means whatever we experience, so we can only convey what we know to other people. And what we know is this world only. And therefore, what can this world teach? It can teach us a lot."

What is it that we want? We don't want to die. We don't want to become old. We don't want to suffer. Always we want to be happy. Can we get it in this world? Absolutely not. If we really analyse and compare, what is the proportion of suffering to the amount of happiness we get? Is it at least 50-50%? No.

Swami Yathishanth Maharaj used to tell a beautiful story. Once a man went to a restaurant in England. At that time, the Second World War was going on, and food material was very scarce. He had not tasted rabbit meat for a long time. But suddenly, to his great delight, he found a restaurant announcing rabbit meat served here. So gladly, he rushed in to order a dish of rabbit meat. He was served. He was eating. He knew what rabbit's meat tastes like, but he was not getting it. So he called the cook and said, "Is there really rabbit flesh here?" The cook said, "Yes, sir." "I don't get the taste." Then the waiter confessed, "Sir, rabbits are very scarce, so we have to mix some horse flesh." "Oh! So what is the proportion?" He said, "50-50." "What is 50-50?" "One rabbit versus one horse." Naturally, he was not getting the taste of the rabbit.

At least, if we can get 50% of happiness in this world, we can say that some justification is there. But truly, if we say 23 hours and 58 minutes of a day, we are labouring hard, and maybe one or two seconds we get some experience of pleasure. How much time does it take to prepare a sweet? How much time does it take to really enjoy it? Before, there is hard work, and afterward, we have to digest it. So many complications can come later on. But that moment, alone we count, forget everything, and the world is very happy. No.

As I was saying earlier, newspapers can teach us a great lesson. Two such lessons we can learn. I am highlighting them. What is the first lesson? The very first lesson is that everything is fast changing in this world. That is the first part of the first lesson. The second part of the first lesson is people are the same. Life is the same from the beginning of creation until eternity. Nothing changes. There were good people, there were bad people, and the proportion is like 50-50. So this has not changed. Previously, we called them Rakshasas, Ravanasuras. Now we call them politicians, Hitlers. No difference at all. But the people who suffer are ordinary people. Even now, the same thing is going on. That's why Swamiji made a remarkable statement. There is no democracy anywhere to be found. Everywhere, people are ruled by a few number of selfish, petty, but very powerful, ruthless people. Call them politicians by whatever blessed name you want to call them. So this is the first lesson.

What is the second lesson? If you have to read the newspaper, then you read the obituary column. People you know, people you don't know, young, old, they are dead. It could be murder, it could be an accident, it could be old age, it could be for any reason. If we read the newspaper in this way, then we can learn a great lesson. Because I am in the world, I can also change.

But the most important lesson we learn from the scriptures. Now I am discriminating between the newspaper and the scripture. The newspaper tells us what is the nature of the world very vividly. But the scripture alone can tell us. Is there any way out? Yes. Does God exist? Yes. What do I gain if I realize God? If I go to God? If I am with Him? Call it Moksha. Call it Vaikuntha. Call it the attainment of Brahman. Let us not quarrel with words. What do I gain? For eternity, I will have no death. I will have only Sat. I will never be ignorant. I will be all-knowing. And I will be Paramananda Swaroopa. I will not have happiness. I will repeat. I will not have happiness. I become happiness. That is my nature. And in this world, whatever we are experiencing, this is called experiential happiness. It is all coming. That is called the having mode of happiness, not the being mode of happiness. This is the essence of every Upanishad. It wants to tell us what we should have learned. Without the aid of any scripture, the nature of the world, there is birth, there is growth, there is death. Nobody lives forever, and we cannot separate happiness and unhappiness. They come together. They also go together.

But the world can never tell us where from the world has come and who is the originator or what is the nature of the cause, Karana. Sarva Karana Karana. And what is the nature of that Karana. And reminds us, Karana and Karya can never be different. If clay is the Karana, anything made out of clay will be only clay, etc. We discussed already about it. If I am coming from God, if you are coming from God, if the entire Loka is coming from God, then it must be God only because the world is the effect, and God is the original cause. This is the great lesson.

But there are further lessons. I am telling you this because we have many misunderstandings about creation. So the next misunderstanding about creation is that why God has created me. Of course, the real answer we will never know. From our experience only, we can understand. God created the world, not for His sake, but for our sake.

What is it? I have done Karma, and therefore I create my own world to exhaust my own Purva Janma Karma. So who is the Brahma? I am the Brahma. Who is the Vishnu? I am the Vishnu. And who is the Shiva? I am the Shiva. I created this world. I am maintaining the world, and I dissolve the world. How did I create the world? Because of my Purva Karma. And how am I maintaining? To exhaust my Purva Janma Karma Phala. Purva Janma doesn't mean only the very last birth. No. It could be any of the millions of births I had previously. Then what am I doing? I am creating new Karma. I cannot have any power to change what has happened in the past. But God has given us that freedom. From this moment onwards, whatever can be done, I can do it consciously, purposefully, with thoughtfulness. That is the purpose. So, this is how we have to understand.

Like Brahma also has a day and night. But that Brahma is like the grandmother. In Sri Ramakrishna's parable, there is a grandmother, and she gathers different seeds from different vegetables after the harvest is over. She dries the seeds and keeps the seeds. When the next rainy season comes, what does she do? She prepares the ground. She puts the seeds. Where from the seed has come? From its past birth. And what does it grow into? Into its own nature. But this analogy has to be expanded. Human beings have the freedom. Slowly but surely, by taking the advice of the teachers, the scriptures, our own anubhava, acharya, shastra, swanubhava, we can slowly become better people. But we have to struggle for it. That is why in the Bhagavad Gita, the very first opening shloka, dharmakshetram kurukshetram. dharmakshetre kurukshetre. Dharmakshetram. Kshetram means a field. The field means that which is ready for cultivation. But it is called dharmakshetra. You sow poisonous seeds, a poisonous plant will grow. You sow seeds of sweet mango, sweet mangoes will grow. That is why it is called dharmakshetra. It will not give a result which we do not deserve. But at the same time, it is kurukshetra. Kuru means do. You will have to cultivate it. If you simply sit, it is not going to happen. No result will come. But it is not true that if we do not do anything, no result will come. That is not true. If we do not do, we will become worse and worse.

Just like if we do not do exercise, we are going only to become worse and worse. This is the background. Srishti is good, and if we are enjoying or suffering, we are responsible. Srishti is good because every millisecond is a new opportunity for us to learn our lessons. Our first lesson is what have I learned from this life until now. Second lesson is what can I do to better my situation. This is called evolution. And God is always ready to bestow His grace.

With this background, we will start. Already I have started. The first mantra is telling an irrefutable fact. What is that fact?

om atma va idameka evagra asinnanyatki.nchana mishat.

What does it mean? Om is for the sake of beginning something auspicious. Atmava. So which Atma? Is it Jeevatma or Paramatma? It is only Paramatma because Srishti has not started. Without Srishti, the question of Jeevatma does not arise. So therefore, Atmava Idam means whatever was existing Eka Eva Agre Asit, Only one Atman is there. Ekaha Eva, One only. Why those words? Ekaha means there are technical reasons for that, and we are thankful to Shankaracharya for expounding those technical reasons.

What is the nature of this world? First of all, it is an effect. And this world has three characteristics. What are those? It is full of differences. I, you, he, she, they, it, living, non-living, and all the differences in the world are subdivided by Vedanta into three categories. They are called Vijatiya Bheda, Sajatiya Bheda, and Swagata Bheda. What is Vijatiya Bheda? As an example, two trees are there, a mango tree and a coconut tree or two animals are there, a cow and an elephant. Everything is different from everything else. Then, not only that, having divided Vijatiya, in every Jati also, there is a Sajatiya. No two human beings are alike. It is said that no two hairs on the head of a human being are ever exactly the same. There will be colour differences, differences of size, length, colour, fragility, etc. Once I have seen a book, it is full of photographs. What are the photographs? Somebody had taken the snowfall. Snow is falling mostly in the western countries. In Himalayas also you can see snow is raining, and when the snow is falling, this person had taken a very special camera, a very magnifying camera. Each of these snowflakes can be magnified a thousand times or even more in size. And then this person was astonished. He started taking photos everywhere. And then what did he find? First of all, no two snowdrops are of the same size. Secondly, every snowdrop is of that delicate, intricate, inimitable design. It is astonishing, as if a goldsmith had designed these things. It is what they call nowadays designer cloths or designer snowdrops. Only Bhagawan can do it. When we look at them on the ground, they all look the same. Here also looks the same. But when we look at each separate individual, no two leaves are alike, no two heaves are alike, no two snowdrops are alike. This is called Sajatiya Bheda.

Then, even if you take one tree, for example, both are coconut trees or both are mango trees, take any one tree, one mango tree, this is called Swagatha Bheda. There is a difference. This is the root. This is the trunk. This is the big branch. Big branch gives birth to so many smaller branches. And they give birth to still smaller branches. Then there are leaves. Then there are blossoms. Then there are fruits. Everything is different. Every part is different from each other. And a very marvellous fact is, on the same tree, there will be so many birds, and all of them, some are eating the fruits, some are eating the leaves, some worms are eating, some insects are eating the bark, some are eating, burrowing into the tree. For example, there is a bird which pecks into the tree, makes a hole and sucks the juice out of it. It is called woodpecker. So, so many birds, every part of the tree is utilized.

What is this Paramatma? He is Eka Ewa. There is no Vijatiya Bheda, there is no Sajjatiya Bheda, and there is no Swagatha Bjeda. Eka, there is no second one other than Him. And that is said, na anyat kinchana mishat. Mishat means, literal meaning winking. Mishat means what? That which is a second creature, a second object. That's why Eka Ewa. Nothing is there. Neither living. Mishat means winking. Winking means only a living creature. I am winking. You are winking. A dog is winking. etc, etc. So na kinchana. Not even one. Mishat, winking creature. That means living.

Shankaracharya adds, mishat means, also we have to take amishat, means there is neither a living being nor non-living. This difference between the living and the non-living will come only after the srishti. So, what does srishti mantra mean? Only Paramatma was. But we have to extend the meaning and said even after this creation has come out, there is nothing else but only Paramatma. In order to make us understand it, sa ikshata has been changed into aikshata. Aikshata means he saw. He saw means he visualized. He visualized means he thought. He thought means he is, see, in this world, whenever we look at any object, we find two causes. One is called material cause. Another is called intelligent cause. We can also add another cause that is called instrumental cause.

Take the familiar example. A potter takes clay. Clay is the material cause. Then he takes a wheel, that is called instrumental cause. And then he is the intelligent cause. Nimitta in Sanskrit intelligent cause is called nimitta karana and upadana karana means material cause. So with the help of some instrument, an intelligent cause fashions, creates something different, but he requires a material. So here, the Aitareya Upanishad is telling us that there is only Paramatma, and He created this world. That detail will come later on. But we are forestalling what is to come.

So, he said that let me create the worlds. Then you know, Bhagawan is called satyakamaha, satya sankalpaha. Very beautiful words. What does it mean? First of all, satyakamaha means He will never wish for anything which is asatya, mithya. That is which is changing, which is not useful, which is inauspicious, etc. Whatever He desires, it will be only satya. And there is a beautiful saying satyam eva jayate na anrutam. That is untruth can never prime. Only truth because untruth will change. Satyam will never change. So the technical definition of satyam is trikala abadhitam satyam. That which never changes in three times, past, present, and future. That is defined technically as satyam.

When Bhagawan wishes, He cannot wish anything else because even if He wishes something untruth, let me create, He cannot create because He is the Vishwabrahmanda. He is infinite. There is nothing besides Him. Ekameva agre asit. He cannot wish. And then He is also called satyasankalpaha. Whatever wish comes into His mind, immediately it gets fulfilled. We get this tenesisya as tremendous faith in these scriptures and in the Guru. That is called Shraddha. As an example of this Shraddha, many times I have quoted, maybe in other contexts, there was a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. He was called Nagamahasaya, and one day he came to see Sri Ramakrishna at Dakshineswar or Kazipur, I do not remember, and as he was about to enter the room, he heard I feel like eating an amlaki, a sour fruit, a peculiar type of fruit. Immediately he left the place. That was not this. It is a seasonal fruit. It is impossible to get it practically at other seasons. You know many things when they are not seasonal, we human beings are intelligent. We pickle them. Every country does it, whether it is cabbage, cauliflower, or brinjal, tomato, and of course lemon and amlaki, everything. But Nagamahasaya had that faith. My Guru's mouth uttered these words. It must be somewhere. He went and started searching in gardens continuously for three days without sleep. He searched. At last he found a few amlakis hanging and then with the permission of the watchman took those things, straight came back to Sri Ramakrishna.

See the Guru Bhakti now. Sri Ramakrishna was very happy. Now you must have read this incident, but what we have to understand is, did you think that there is any meaning behind this incident? Was Sri Ramakrishna like us, really longing for eating an amlaki? A man of what is called Nirvikalpa Samadhi, do you think he cannot live? Strange thing is, when we are sick, our body automatically longs for something which is useful for the body to repair itself because this amlaki contains a high quantity of vitamin C and so many other things I don't know, but it is very health productive. Was it or he wanted to test, to show to other people the Shraddha or what were the other people doing? Sir, we are very sorry it is not available now. They did not have the Shraddha. That means what? They considered him as an ordinary person. He simply had this desire, and now unfortunately we would like to fulfil it, but we know it is not possible.

Naga Maharshi thought it is impossible that a word like that will come from a Satyavanta Purusha because Brahma with Brahmaiva Bhavati, whatever comes from his mouth, from the mouth of a realized soul, must be real only. Satyakamaha Satyasankalpaha. Remember the story of Satyakama Jabala? He was Satyakama, that is why he spoke the truth, that is why the Guru also, who was an enlightened soul, he also has accepted him because he spoke the truth. What was the truth? I am a bastard, that was the truth. But who can say I am a bastard? Only a Brahmana. Who is a Brahmana? A Satyavanta, only who can speak the truth.

Now Sri Ramakrishna took, and he was very observant, his eyes are extraordinarily observant. He noticed that Nagamashaya had not eaten. Already he was sickly looking and now even three days very tired but extremely happy I could fulfill my Guru's desire. Then Sri Ramakrishna immediately asked please go and take food. Nagamashaya, you know what he did? He refused. He did not say no, he said, "Sir, I am fasting because today is Ekadashi and I was observing Ekadashi, I will not take." What did Sri Ramakrishna do? He said okay. He asked a devotee to bring a big plate full of food from downstairs, and it was brought, and Sri Ramakrishna just touched a little bit to his mouth and said now you eat. And without murmur Nagamashaya ate it. Why? Because Guru Prasada is even more sacred than any Prasada, and fast can be broken. What is the purpose of fasting? To obtain more devotion to God. What is the purpose of eating Guru Prasada? To have more Guru Bhakti. And Guru Bhakti is more of Divine Bhakti.

We have seen the very last mantras of the Shwetashwetra Upanishad. Yasya Deve Para Bhakti Yatha Guru Tatha Deve Yatha Deve Tatha Guru. No difference between Ishta Devata and Guru. Nagamashaya exemplified, illustrated that tremendous Shraddha, these are the lessons we have to learn, and here also, we have to learn the lessons. What is the meaning of Agra Eka Eva? Agra means before creation, only Paramatma was there; therefore, what is the implication? The whole creation must have come from Him because there was nothing else. But what was the nature of Paramatma? He is what is called three types of Bhedas: Abhedaha, Bheda Rahitaha, is not having Ide Vijatiye Bheda, Sajjatiye Bheda, Swagata Bheda. That is the one meaning of Eka because He is partless, Akhanda. He is also Ananta. He was there, and He is Nitya, Shuddha, Buddha, Mukta, Swaroopaha. Nothing else but that. Ekam Eva Agra Asit, and nothing was there. That means before creation He was alone there. Then what did He do? Sa aikshata, then He thought. He visualized. Lokannu Srija Iti, may I become many. Let me create the worlds is the literal meaning. Lokannu Srija Iti, let me create the worlds. Now, if He was like a potter, He required material cause like a potter requires, a potter cannot make a pot out of himself. He has to take another substance which is called clay, a goldsmith, gold, a carpenter, wood. So also here, Bhagawan, there is nothing else, that is said, Na Anyat Kinchana, nothing else is there. That means what? He is the material cause. Then Aikshata means what? He desired, He visualized. What is the meaning of visualizing? Previous Kalpa I have created like this, so this Kalpa also I will create exactly the same thing. This is one of the strangest truths.

Swami Vivekananda expounds that this world, which you and I see, has witnessed the oppression of India by various powers over time. It began with the Turks, then the Mughals, followed by the French, Dutch, and finally the British. The current era is marked by the domination of India by our present enlightened politicians, who often engage in quarrelling and shouting at each other. This historical pattern of subjugation was present in the Purva Kalpa, and it has remained consistent throughout history. This enduring reality demonstrates that it is deeply rooted, stretching back to the Anadi Kala, which signifies a time without a beginning.

In light of this, do I need to attend the Aitreya Upanishad class that you're expounding, again in the next Kalpa? Unfortunately, yes, you will have to attend it again. This is not a compliment but rather a derogatory remark because, as a good teacher, I would have expected you to understand and surrender yourself to God, achieving Mukta Purusha, and thereby avoiding the need for further instruction.

You might wonder who will attend the class if not you. However, neither you nor I will be there permanently. We will both attain Mukti (liberation). But, think of it as a mould, similar to how we create moulds during festivals like Diwali, where we melt sugar and pour it into moulds to create various shapes, like a parrots head, an elephant's head like that. Bhagawan, being more intelligent than us, thought of creating a mould that He repeats in every Yuga and every Kalpa. Lokan Srijayate.

Now, the question arises: where did He find the material for this creation? The answer is that He Himself is the material cause, the intelligent cause, and the instrumental cause. In other words, the entire universe is nothing but a manifestation of Paramatma, and nothing else.

So, what about the Bhedas? Some argue there is no real Bheda. However, there are a few more points to consider. How did He create? Just like a potter, He visualized, had knowledge, and used His intelligence. An excellent way to understand this is to consider our dreams – we create dream worlds with dream people and a dream "I". It's all imagination, and while it's appearing, we consider it real. Whereas truth will be there for eternity. However, as soon as we wake up, we realize it was just a dream.

Similarly, the waking state is not entirely real. It changes from day to day, and nothing in this world remains constant. It's like a stream in a river, always moving and changing. As a Greek philosopher said, "No man steps into the same river twice." The world is not real in the absolute sense, and there are two views on this. Some believe it is a real world created by God, while others argue it is not. Since God has created it, it can never be a mythic world; it can only be a real world. However, Advaitins and non-Advaitins hold differing views. While Advaitins subscribe to the concept of Parinama Vada, believing that God has truly become the world, non-Advaitins adopt the view that it is merely apparent, existing only as an illusion.

This perspective posits that the world is like a mirage, akin to a snake appearing on a rope. An apt analogy can be drawn to a rope, which remains unchanged. The illusion of a snake is not in the rope itself but in our perception. Instead of attempting to beat the rope with a stick to dispel the illusion, it's far simpler to take a single blow to your own head, leading to a temporary unconsciousness. Upon awakening, you realize it was only a rope.

However, this is just a perspective, and it doesn't necessitate delving into controversies about what is right or wrong. I have my own view on this, which I'll mention for your benefit. It's crucial to reiterate that, whether one adheres to Dvaita or Advaita, the fundamental point remains that we must focus on self-improvement.

Let me offer you an analogy: Imagine you have a needle and have used it for needlework. After some time, you've forgotten where you've stored it safely. Instead of wasting time searching for it, you opt to borrow one from a neighbour or purchase a new one from a nearby store to complete your task. However, upon revisiting the location where you thought you'd hidden the needle, you find the original one. The point of this analogy is that, even if you knew the needle existed, it was useless because you didn't know where it was. Advaitins assert that you don't need to search for Brahman (the divine reality) because it's already there; you are that. However, without the knowledge of its location, it makes no difference whether you subscribe to Dvaita or Advaita. It does not matter what Sadhana you do. What truly matters is the transformation in your life. Even if I can bring about a small transformation in my life I will be very happy. Every step forward in your spiritual journey leads to the increase of three things within you: Sat (goodness), Chit (consciousness), and Ananda (bliss). This progress is synonymous with growing closer to God, as His nature is characterized by Sat, Chit, and Ananda. It signifies that your purity, authenticity, and truthfulness will increase as you approach God. As we approach fire, we don't remain separate from it; the fire becomes one with us, and our body becomes warmer. This metaphorically implies that we become more "fiery" in nature. People who come into contact with us experience the same transformative effect as they would with fire.

This progression is not solely a surface-level change; it signifies a deep transformation. It's not about merely attending spiritual discussions, sitting in holy gatherings, and enjoying delicious prasada. Sat Sangatya, the association of the holy, must lead to genuine transformation.

Sri Ramakrishna used to explain that when the Malaya breeze blows, certain trees instantly turn into sandalwood trees, while others remain unchanged. In the same way, Sat Sangatya should gradually lead to a real transformation. It's not just about discussions and enjoying prasada; it's about experiencing true change.

What is "chit"? Chit refers to our power of discrimination, or "viveka buddhi." With an awakened viveka buddhi, vairagya (dispassion) will naturally develop. When we recognize something as poison, we won't need to deliberate a hundred times about giving it up; it will happen automatically. If it doesn't, it indicates that our Viveka, discernment is flawed.

Similarly, our "ananda" (bliss) grows by thinking about God, listening to God, reading about God, and conversing with God. The Bhagavad Gita also advises devotees to engage in discussions where they talk about God, and others listen, and vice versa. Devotees are highly content with this, and at the same time, they are never fully satisfied. The moment they taste the divine, they want more and become "addicted" to God, akin to spiritual "alcoholics."

The concept of creation in this world is not akin to a potter creating a pot but rather a manifestation of God. Just as we manifest in the dream state, all of us are none other than God, which embodies the essence of the famous teaching, "Tat Tvam Asi" ("Thou art That"). Ayam Atma Brahma, Your "Atma" is Brahman, and in the Aitareya Upanishad, it is stated, "Prajnanam Brahma," (one of the Rig Vedic Mahavakyas) meaning your consciousness is none other than Brahman. What you claim as intelligence, knowledge, memory, and awareness are all manifestations of God. We often fail to credit this divine nature in our everyday lives.

This Upanishad teaches us to understand that since Paramatma (the Supreme Soul) alone is manifesting, there is nothing truly inert in the world. Paramatma embodies Chaitanya Swaroopa, which signifies that everything is imbued with consciousness and bliss.

Sri Ramakrishna frequently emphasized that we are none other than Brahman. The key is to remove the limitations imposed by the "Ahamkara" (ego). When we eliminate this limitation, everything is revealed as God. Sri Ramakrishna recounted an incident when he was walking by the banks of the Ganges. He noticed a substantial stone following him. When he moved forward, it followed, and when he stopped, it stopped. Sri Ramakrishna realized that there was no clear distinction between living and non-living entities. For someone who knows everything, nothing is merely inert.

To conclude, it's worth remembering that Gautama Rishi once cursed Ahalya to become a stone. However, if she were to become a stone, she wouldn't be capable of contemplating God. Instead, she became entirely absorbed in meditation on Sri Rama. Only when her spiritual practice reached perfection, Siddhi, Sri Rama himself came, touched her, and awakened her. It's not that she transformed from a stone to a conscious being; rather, she had already transcended external consciousness through her devotion.