Knowledge Through Self Realization
INTROSPECTION
Who Am I?
Every living being longs to be perpetually happy, without any misery. Since in everyone the highest love is alone felt for oneself and since happiness alone is the cause of love, in order to attain that happiness, which is one’s real nature and which is experienced daily in the mindless state of deep sleep, it is necessary to know oneself. To achieve that, enquiry in the form of “Who Am I?” is the foremost means.
“Who Am I?” * The physical body, composed of the seven dhatus, is not “I”. * The five sense organs and the five types of perception known through the senses are not “I”. * The five parts of the body which acts and their functions are not “I”. * The five vital airs such as prana, which perform the five vital functions such as respiration, are not “I”. * Even the mind that thinks is not “I”. * In the state of deep sleep vishaya vasanas remain, devoid of sensory knowledge and activity, even this state is not “I”.
After negating all of the above as “not I, not I, the knowledge that alone remains is itself “I”. The nature of knowledge that alone remains is itself “I”. The nature of knowledge is sat-chit-ananda (being – consciousness –bliss).
That which rises as “I” in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in the body the thought “I” rises first, one would discover that it rises in the heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin. Even if one thinks constantly “I” “I”, one will be led to that place. Of all the thoughts that arise in the mind, the “I” thought is the first. It is only after the rise of this that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of the first personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear; without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.
The mind will only subside by means of the enquiry “Who am I?” The thought “Who am I?”, destroying all other thoughts, will itself be finally destroyed like the stick used for stirring
Who Am I?
Every living being longs to be perpetually happy, without any misery. Since in everyone the highest love is alone felt for oneself and since happiness alone is the cause of love, in order to attain that happiness, which is one’s real nature and which is experienced daily in the mindless state of deep sleep, it is necessary to know oneself. To achieve that, enquiry in the form of “Who Am I?” is the foremost means.
“Who Am I?” * The physical body, composed of the seven dhatus, is not “I”. * The five sense organs and the five types of perception known through the senses are not “I”. * The five parts of the body which acts and their functions are not “I”. * The five vital airs such as prana, which perform the five vital functions such as respiration, are not “I”. * Even the mind that thinks is not “I”. * In the state of deep sleep vishaya vasanas remain, devoid of sensory knowledge and activity, even this state is not “I”.
After negating all of the above as “not I, not I, the knowledge that alone remains is itself “I”. The nature of knowledge that alone remains is itself “I”. The nature of knowledge is sat-chit-ananda (being – consciousness –bliss).
That which rises as “I” in this body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in the body the thought “I” rises first, one would discover that it rises in the heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin. Even if one thinks constantly “I” “I”, one will be led to that place. Of all the thoughts that arise in the mind, the “I” thought is the first. It is only after the rise of this that the other thoughts arise. It is after the appearance of the first personal pronoun that the second and third personal pronouns appear; without the first personal pronoun there will not be the second and third.
The mind will only subside by means of the enquiry “Who am I?” The thought “Who am I?”, destroying all other thoughts, will itself be finally destroyed like the stick used for stirring