I Am That Session 63 Ch 22 Love Is Life Life Is Love Part 2

Listen to Ektaji talk about Nisargadatta Maharaj's book I Am That. Nisargadatta Maharaj was a teacher who did not propound any ideology or religion, but gently unwrapped the mystery of the self. I Am That preserves his dialogs with the followers who came from around the world seeking guidance in destroying false identities.

Transcript

The Realized Man eats, Drinks and sleeps. What makes him do so? Maharaj, The same power that moves the universe moves him too. Questioner, All are moved by the same power. What is the difference? Maharaj, This only. The Realized Man knows what others merely hear but don't experience. Intellectually they may seem convinced but in action they betray their bondage. While the Realized Man is always right. Questioner says everybody says I am. The Realized Man too says I am. Where is the difference? Maharaj says the difference is in the meaning attached to the words I am. This you must highlight. This is the difference between the wise and the ignorant. The wise man knows I am the witness of the vyakti whereas the ignorant man says I am the vyakti, I am the person. Here the wise man really knows it. The ignorant man he only knows it intellectually. Intellectually they seem convinced but in action they betray their bondage. The difference is in the meaning attached to the words I am. With the Realized Man the experience I am the world, The world is mine is supremely valid. He thinks, Feels and acts integrally and in unity with all that lives. He may not even know the theory and practice of self-realization and be born and bred free of religious and metaphysical notions. But there will not be the least flaw in his understanding and compassion. The wise man knows the real meaning of I am and the ignorant man only knows himself as the vyakti. He thinks he is the body-mind. So he says I am the vyakti. Whereas the wise man, The Realized Man knows that no, Even the vyakti is the world is my projection. So he knows the real I am. I am the world, The world is mine. This is all me, This is all me, My own reflection. The wise man says that this is all my projection, There is no I in you, There is only I. That is the real meaning of I am. There is no world there. Ajanta. I may come across a beggar, Naked and hungry and ask him, Who are you? He may answer, I am the Supreme Self. Well, I say, Since you are the Supreme, Change your present state. What will he do? He will ask you, Which state? What is there that needs changing? What is wrong with me? Yes, Do you see that? What is wrong? The questioner said, Why should he answer so? Maharaj says, Because he is no longer bound by appearances. He does not identify himself with the name and shape. He uses memory, But memory cannot use him. He is not bound by his naked body, He is the beggar, He doesn't have money, He is sitting there. He is not bound by that. He doesn't bother, Because he recognizes I am not this body-mind only that is the beggar. I am the witness, I have gone beyond. So what needs to be changed? Does the witness say something needs to be changed? Does the witness have a problem? So he is always there. You learn this very beautiful point, He uses memory, But memory does not use him. Questioner says, Is not all knowledge based on memory? Maharaj says, Lower knowledge, Yes. Higher knowledge, Knowledge of reality is inherent in man's true nature. Do you get this? You don't need to really remember. If you have to remember, That means you have not really seen your true nature, Not recognized. That's how I know when you come to one-on-one, Whether you're really getting it or it's just intellectualization. If you have to memorize it, That means it is not your nature, You haven't seen your nature yet, You're not clearing it. Lower knowledge, Yes. Higher knowledge, Knowledge of reality is inherent in man's true nature. Questioner asks, Can I say that I am not what I am conscious of, Nor am I consciousness itself? Maharaj warns him, As long as you are a seeker, Better cling to the idea that you are pure consciousness, Free from all content. To go beyond consciousness is the supreme state. Consciousness means witness consciousness. To go beyond witness consciousness is the supreme state. So you cling to that, I am that, That which is beyond the witness consciousness, The pure consciousness, And it is devoid of all content. So questioner says, The desire for realization, Does it originate in consciousness or beyond? So in consciousness means in witness consciousness. The desire for realization, Does it originate in the witness consciousness or beyond? Maharaj says, In witness consciousness of course. All desire is born from memory and is within the realm of the witness consciousness. What is beyond is clear of all striving. The very desire to go beyond consciousness is still in consciousness. So any desire that comes up in you, Any desire, It is based upon memory. You've heard it, You've talked about it, You've discussed it, You've read it, It's based on memory. Any desire, Any desire comes from the sense of I am. Even the desire that I want to attain self-realization, I want to get enlightened. Who has this desire? The witness consciousness. Questioner, Is there any trace or imprint of the beyond on the witness consciousness? So he's asking, Is there any imprint, Anything on the sense of I am of the pure consciousness or primordial awareness? He's asking, Is there an imprint? Maharaj says, No, There cannot be. So questioner says, Then what is the link between the two? Between what and what? Witness consciousness and pure consciousness. What is the link between the two? How can a passage be found between two states which have nothing in common? Is not, The correct word there is chidakasha, The link between the two. You can scratch out pure awareness and call it chidakasha in the Marathi book. That is the correct word. The questioner used the word in Marathi chidakasha. Is not the chidakasha the link between the two? You remember we did yesterday, Paramakasha on one side, Mahadakasha on one side and chidakasha in the middle? Yes, You remember that? You drew a little diagram also. Yeah, And chidakasha was the bridge between the mahadakasha which was the matter, Pure matter. And paramakasha was pure spirit. Do you remember? And chidakasha is the mind and the witness. So this chidakasha was the link between mahadakasha and paramakasha. So he was probably in the previous lecture, Previous pravachan. He was sitting there. That's where he's dotted from memory. So he's asking what is the link between the witness consciousness and pure consciousness? How can a passage be found between the two states which have nothing in common? Is not chidakasha? Yeah, He's asking about the mind and witness. Is not the chidakasha the link between the two? Maharaj says even chidakasha is form of witness consciousness only. The mind is nothing else but the witness consciousness forgetting itself and assuming to be the body mind. Yeah, So even the chidakasha is a form of witness consciousness only. So questioner says then what is beyond? Emptiness? Maharaj says emptiness. The word in Marathi is shunyata. Shunyata again refers only to witness consciousness. Fullness and emptiness are relative terms. The real is really beyond. Beyond not in relation to witness consciousness but beyond all relations of whatever kind. This is very important to understand. Poornata and shunyata belong to what? These are two opposites. What do they belong to? Witness consciousness. The pure consciousness is beyond both. Beyond both. So he is saying that these are relative terms. All opposites, All relative terms belong to the witness consciousness only. Pure consciousness is beyond both. That is why it has the power on both. You are beyond the waking and the dreaming. That is why you have the power of both, Right? In your own direct experience that you have seen. That is why you know the dream state, You know the waking state. You are beyond both. You know the absence of these two also in the deep sleep. So you are beyond presence and you are beyond absence. That's why you know both. If you were at the level of the presence and the absence, You would miss something. You have to be beyond both to know both. This is very clear? That is meant by totality. Everything is below it, Lower than it. It is higher than everything. All relative terms. That's why it's called the absolute. I can only say so much. Beyond that, You have to just recognize it. That is why I insist on direct experience. I insist on experiential recognition. Attempt to see it. Attempt to see it. Emptiness again refers only to consciousness, Which is witness consciousness. Fullness and emptiness are relative terms. The real is really beyond. Beyond not in relation to the witness consciousness only, But beyond all relations of whatever kind. The difficulty comes with the word state. The real is not a state of something else. It is not a state of the mind. It's not a state of the consciousness. It's not a state of the psyche. Nor is it something that has a beginning and an end. A being or not being. All opposites are contained in it, But it is not in the play of opposites. That's the answer for you. All opposites are contained in it, But it's not in that play, Not in that game. It is beyond. You must not take it to be the end of a transition. It is itself after the witness consciousness as such is no more. Please highlight and explain this. You transition from the waking to the dream. From the dream, You transition to the deep sleep. Between the transition from dream to the deep sleep, You see the witness consciousness collapse. So you feel, Oh, After the witness consciousness collapses, What is there is the pure consciousness. Oh, It is the end of the transition. That's the way the mind wants to think. Maharaj says, Uh-uh, You're making an error if you're thinking that it is the end of a transition. It is not that. It is itself after the witness consciousness as such is no more. Means it is the ocean. It is like the space. It was always there. It's not the end or the beginning of a transition. It is the space in which all these transitions are appearing and disappearing. The words I am man or I am God have no meaning. Only in silence and in darkness can it be heard and seen. It's talking about pure consciousness, Primordial awareness. Only in that silence, In that darkness, In the nothingness. Not that you can really hear it. Now you're going to try to stay awake to hear it. Again, A poetic way to say that you cannot know it. You can only be it. Again, Words like these confuse people. Heard and seen. Oh, Now I can see pure consciousness. No, Then pure consciousness becomes an object if you can see it. It becomes an object if you can hear it. This was just poetically said by Maharaj. To know it, You have to simply be that. So, Attempt to just be. Just be. You will notice the beginning window of nothingness where the eye collapses and from which the eye arises. You will know because you are the one that is beyond. You know yourself. Awareness, Knowing awareness. That is what is deep sleep. That is how you know yourself. That's just by being it. Not by making yourself an object. 100% clear, This chapter? So, What was the crux of this chapter really? The inner and the outer. I have to look at that. That the outer obeys the inner. Can I recognize the subtle thought? And then can I recognize the gross manifestation? Recognize such ten events. Once this is very clear, It becomes clear. Oh, Projection is inside out. Oh, If projection is inside out, Then I am the world. The world is mine because it is my projection. I am the world. There is no world which existed before and I was born in it. It is completely wrong idea that I had. I am this world. And this becomes very clear. This becomes clear that subtle manifested as gross. Now I have the strength, The key. I recognize where the correction can be done. So, Few chapters ago, Maharaj said, Where does the correction have to be done? At the source. What is the source? What is the source of desire you just did in this chapter? Witness consciousness is the source of desire, The sense of I am. That's when that subtle thought arises first. It is a vasana. I want one extra chapati, Yummy food. Subtle thought. Withdraw. I know I will have some problem later. It's extra. I just said extra. Withdraw. If you don't withdraw, What happens? Automatically it becomes a gross manifestation. Now I am telling you a very harmless little thing. The same thing happens. Subtle vasana comes out. He said this to me. I am going to see now. I am going to spoil the rest of the day for him. And then you go catch hold of him. Have a 20-30 minute argument. After that you are boiling in your head. Why did I say this? Why did he say this? This went so bad. Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah. Two days you are not sleeping. Subtle vasana manifested as gross manifestation. The outer follows the inner. Is this very clear now? Projection is very clear? Yeah? Now start correcting it at the source. At the source. Again and again and again. Very, Very clear? Yeah? Just remember I am the pure consciousness. That's one thing Maharaj told us to remember. I am the pure consciousness that is devoid of all this content. Devoid of this subtle thought of I should go and tell him this. And the gross manifestation whatever argument happened after that. I am pure. I am not all this. Stay there. Stay there. Stay there. The more the inner stays there, The outer will eventually follow. Is this very clear? Yeah? You heard it from the horse's mouth. Now you work on it.

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