Beyond the mind and body: what is our true nature?

Beyond the mind and body: what is our true nature?

The true self, Atman.

In he journey of spiritual awakening, as we move towards that ultimate goal, spiritual enlightenment through realization of self, one question that holds supreme gravity over every moment is - who am I really? Those who'll say "I am my body, the same body whose reflection I can see in the mirror" are completely identified with their bodies, and similarly those supporting Descarte's logic - Cogito Ergo Sum (I think, therefore I am) - are similarly identified with their minds. But in my personal realization, I have realized that the volatile forms of mind and body are hardly the same as the true self.

The story of Vyasa - "I haven't eaten anything" 

In ancient India, the sages of the old had come very close to that ultimate realization, and they had followed a very powerful logical procedure for that, disidentification. After thoroughly examining the nature and properties of various volatile substances all around, as well as the volatilities that constitute our outer forms, such as the body or the somewhat subtler mind, they had realized that these forms can not be the true self, thereby disidentifying from them.

Maharishi Vyasa (Vyas Krishna Dwipayana),
composer of the Mahabharata.

A beautiful story in the Bhagwat speaks of Maharishi (great sage) Vyasa, the legendary composer of Mahabharata. According to the story, one day a number of Gopinis (milk maids) were on their way to the market, to sell curd, milk and a number of other dairy items. On their way, they had to cross a river, which they couldn't due to the lack of a ferryman to transport them across the water. As such, they got irritated waiting there. Sometime later, Maharishi Vyasa came and blessed the maidens. The maidens then teasingly called out to the sage "O Noble and blessed One, will you kindly show us a way out of this distress? We intend to cross the river, and you must help us".

Vyasa smiled and replied "Noble daughters, I shall help you, but before that please feed me something. I am rather hungry".

The Gopinis immediately presented the noble sage with dairy items such as cheese, curd, milk etc. The sage ate and drank it all, and only afterwards folded his hands in respect to the Yamuna, the personification of the river.

The sage said loudly "O Goddess! May your waters make way for these trapped Gopinis, if I have not touched or eaten anything since the morning". And slowly, the waters subsided, making a dry way for the Gopinis to walk on. After reaching the other side of the river, the maidens burst out laughing, "See? What a liar Lord Vyasa is! He ate everything we offered, and then declared that he hadn't eaten anything since this morning!" 

What we learn from the story is that, Vyasa was one of the sacred few who did not identify themselves with their bodies. That is why, the noble sage had declared himself to be unfed since morning, because only his body had taken the food, and not his true self. For, how can his true self take anything, when that is beyond the laws of nature themselves?

Change, the great teacher 

Whatever changes, can not be the true
self. Thus, this plant's external form
isn't its true self, but it is the energy, the
life-force that dwells within it, is the
true self.

As per the Bhagwat Gita, change is the characteristic of all volatile things, and thus they are all temporary. How shall we then learn from change?

Change is indeed a great teacher, and it shows us that whatever changes, can not be the true self. When you were 10 years younger, you were still present, but your body was different. Your mind, likewise, undergoes change back and forth between happiness and sorrow. Your intellect, subtler than your mind and purer than the same, changes nonetheless. The conscious intellect grows with experience, thinking and learning. Your sense organs at times feel attracted to certain things, and repelled by some.

How then, can you call your body, sense organs, mind or intellect to be the same as what you are? Because yesterday, you were present. Today you are present, and tomorrow too, you shall be present. Then who are you, if not body, organs, mind or intellect? You are that what witnesses all these changes, and thus a background to all of them. And that's why, you truly are 'Being', to use Eckhart Tolle's beautiful terminology, or 'consciousness' or 'awareness', to revert to old Vedantic terminology.

Witnessed and the witness 

"The Universe is the expression of thy glory,
but O Lord! Thou are greater than the same!"
Purusha Sukta, Rigveda 10:90

The human mind is always the judge of everything it perceives, thinks or feels. And the true self, awareness, is the sole observer. It doesn't judge anything, and simply observes. Thus, in a way, everything that can be witnessed, can not be the true self. For, everything that is witnessed or felt or expressed or shown, undergoes change, to use simply logic of experience. Your body can be seen, and it changes. Your organs can be touched, and they undergo change. Your mind can be expressed, and it changes. Your intellect can be expressed, and it changes too. But for all these to be expressed, seen or felt, there must be a background something. Otherwise, to whom will these things be shown? By whom will they be seen??

Thus, beyond the binds of the ego, as we begin to understand our true self, we see that we are not among the witnessed, but we actually are the witness. The silent witness that observes, without judging.

In a beautiful story of two birds mentioned in the Upanishads, we see that there are two similar birds, one that perches atop a branch, and another that perches beneath it. The bird below always tastes each fruit that it can find, gaining bliss from some, and agony from others. Thus, it is always restless. And the bird above doesn't taste anything. It remains as it is, and only observes. Thus, the bird below symbolizes the Jeevatma, in Vedantic terminology, or the human soul. However, in my personalized spiritual model, I would rather call it the egoic self. My knowledge is hardly enough to judge or even attempt to transmute the Vedantic terminology, but I've just done it for simplification for the general reader, and myself. The bird above represents the Paramatman, the universal soul, or as I shall call it, the real self, the awareness in the background of all changes.

Judging leads to bliss or agony,
observation leads to peace.

Thus, call it the Vedantic hypothesis, if you may - "That what changes cannot be the true self" - and logically - "The true self is what doesn't change with time".

May this be the lesson for today, for us all. 

Shanti Mantra

ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पुर्णमुदच्यते
पूर्णश्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

Om Puurnnam-Adah Puurnnam-Idam Puurnnaat-Purnnam-Udacyate
Puurnnashya Puurnnam-Aadaaya Puurnnam-Eva-Avashissyate ||
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||

1: Om, That is Full, This also is Full, From Fullness comes that Fullness,
2: Taking Fullness from Fullness, Fullness Indeed Remains.
3: Om Peace, Peace, Peace. 

Credits: 

1. The Upanishads and Vedantas
2. Golpe Vedanta (Vedanta in stories), Udbodhan Prakashan
3. A New Earth, by Eckhart Tolle 
4. The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle
5. A series of lessons in Gnani Yoga, by W. Atkinson
6. www.greenmesg.org for the slokah 
7. The spirit within, and his realizations