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Those who do not
have the desire for freedom are far from home, busy
chasing after so many things. They will continue to
hanker after enjoyments, again and again, without
getting any peace. If something does not give you
lasting peace, then what is the use of it? Why
chase after it and sustain restlessness? You can
only find peace when you return home to your own
Self, to your desireless nature of silent rest.
Everyone has Buddha-nature in him, so don't think
that you are not worthy or fit enough to win
freedom. Everyone is Buddha himself, but you don't
recognise your Buddha-nature because you want
something else. You don't love and honour your own
Self. Your Self is Buddha. Yet, you don't believe
this because you are deeply attached to something
else which is temporary, impermanent and false. All
your attention is focused on the unreal. The
genuine desire for freedom cannot rise in someone
who is firmly established in ignorance. When you
are in ignorance, Reality is kept hidden from you.
Something else is projected within the mind which
you take to be real. All this is nothing but
ignorance.
For instance, on seeing a rope in dim light and not
recognising it as a rope, a person mistakes it for
a snake which he has seen elsewhere. Due to
ignorance, a rope is mistaken for a snake and the
snake alone is seen. The existence of the rope is
not known at all. This is the quality of ignorance
– to hide that which is real by instantly
projecting something else which is unreal. The rope
is hidden because the snake is projected. What to
do?
This ignorance has no beginning and its result is
samsara, the endless cycle of birth and death. You
get caught in this cycle when you take the unreal
to be true and get entangled in false concepts. The
Self is kept hidden and samsara is projected. With
the superimposition of the non-Self
[samsara] on the Self, the existence of the
Self is not recognised at all, and the non-Self
alone is recognised as existing. So, when you
enquire into the nature of the snake and reason it
out, you will come to know that the snake never
existed and was only an illusion of the mind. This
illusion has created the snake and it has also
created the samsara. When you see the samsara
– the manifested world full of objects and
beings – the Self is concealed. But when you
enquire into That which is concealed by the
samsara, you discover the Self. Without this
enquiry, the Self can never be discovered. Freedom
is here and now. Light is here and now. It is your
many desires which conceal your original,
fundamental, ultimate nature.
As the ether inside a jar is no different from the
ether outside it, you say that you are such and
such a person and that there is something else
outside. This impediment, this illusion, thinking
that "someone" or some "jar" exists is called
"beginningless ignorance". Thinking "I am so and
so" is ignorance. There is no difference between
this thought and samsara. When you think: "I am so
and so", instantly the samsara – with a past,
present and future – is projected.
Return to the enquirer. Ask yourself "Who am I?",
"Who is looking at the samsara?", "Who is
meditating?", "Who is it that feels bondage?", "Who
is it that will win freedom through this enquiry?"
While meditating, find out: "Who is the meditator?"
and "Who is being meditated upon?" Look at this
trinity – the subject, the object and that
which is between them, the meditation itself. This
trinity is nothing but your own creation – the
meditator, the object of meditation [which is
freedom] and the meditation itself. You have
become the meditator and you have objectified
freedom. But freedom, wisdom, or light can never be
objectified because no one can ever experience it.
In freedom there is no experiencer. When the
experiencer is absent, That which is remains as It
is.
This enquiry will take you to the very place from
where the enquiry arose in the first place. The
wave rises from the ocean, but when you only see
the wave, the ocean is concealed. "Wave" is a name,
a movement, and has a unique form. The desire for
freedom rises from freedom itself, from the same
ocean.
When you meditate, the ego rises and you become the
meditator. In this process, you objectify Reality,
which is actually who you truly are. So, the best
meditation is to simply keep quiet here. Don't
follow any thought and don't activate the mind.
This is true meditation. Knowing that you are
meditating is not true meditation. When you keep
quiet here, there is no meditator. There is nothing
to achieve in the future because everything is
already here. The meditator rises from here. When
you keep quiet, there is no meditator, no
meditation and no object of meditation. This is
existence-consciousness-bliss itself. It is in this
instant, in this space. It is who you are,
desireless, perfect Self. In the twinkling of an
eye you are free!
If you don't use this instant to enquire into
freedom, then the samsara will continue. The
samsara is rising up from this very instant, so
enquire into this very instant by keeping quiet.
Freedom has already brought you here and all that
which had to be done has already been done. So now
simply keep quiet. You have already acquired all
that you need.
So, who can keep quiet now, just for one instant?
No one has ever kept quiet, whosoever he may be. So
do it now and see that in this instant there is no
thought, no time, no past. This moment is free from
all past moments. When the past is gone, there is
neither a future nor a present. You are out of time
and you have always been out of time. This is your
true nature and that is why you want to return to
that transcendental, timeless consciousness which
is called Beyond or Emptiness. That is your nature,
you see. That is why you have been spending
millions of years hunting It. You have not found It
so far because you have been begging for other
things which you feel you need. When you make any
effort to get something, you are just wasting your
time. You are now here to get rid of this false
notion of effort. In this instant, don't think,
don't stir the mind, don't make any effort. This
instant is your own fundamental peace, happiness,
love, beauty, joy.
Even when you were involved with other things and
were enjoying other objects, you felt a kind of
happiness. What is this happiness? It is not that
an object has given you this happiness – no
object can ever give you lasting happiness.
Whatever is not permanent can never give you
happiness. This happiness that you felt rose when
your desire for an object had been fulfilled. After
gaining an object of your desire, the desire
vanishes and you return to your desireless, natural
state. You feel happy because nothing disturbs your
mind. But when another desire rises, your mind gets
disturbed once again.
No object, no person and no idea can bring
permanent happiness. Only the Self can give lasting
happiness to the Self. Self is One within all
beings. There is only one Self through which all
beings see, hear, taste, smell and feel. That
indweller, who is listening now and speaking now,
is the One you are seeking. When you know this, you
remain quiet because you recognise: "This is me!
Everything is me!" Here ends your search. It is so
easy!
So, honour this desire for freedom. Always keep it
in mind. Whatever you think, you become, so keep it
in your mind. When you dream of being free, you
become free. Honour it fully, with all your heart,
with all your mind until you see only freedom, only
Self. It is your involvement with fleeting objects,
people and ideas which conceals your freedom. It is
not very wise to get attached to something which is
dying, which is impermanent, which is fading.
Attach yourself only to your true Self. Honour It,
respect It. Self is so beautiful and It will never
die nor fade. Fall in love with your own eternal
Self. This is the best association to keep because
Self will never leave you.
Who witnesses all the individual activities
performed from morning to night? Who witnesses all
universal activity – the shining sun, the
moon, the stars, the revolving earth, the waves
that rise from the ocean, the moving air? Who was
the Witness before the creation of the universe,
even before the beginning of the creator? Who is
the Witness of what is going on now and who will be
the Witness after the dissolution of everything?
Who is this? We call this Brahman. Brahman cannot
be translated into any other language. It is
translated as "Absolute", but this is not adequate.
It cannot be called God, which is only a thought in
the mind. Brahman is the eternal Witness, before
the creation of all the universes and after the
dissolution of all the universes. It always remains
as the Omniscient, Omnipresent Witness.
The sanskrit word for Witness is Sakshi, and it is
translated as "A passive Observer who is not in
contact with activity." The Witness has got nothing
to do with the activity. If some quarrel takes
place, the judge in the court calls for a witness
who has seen the quarrel but has not taken part in
it. Whatever he says is accepted as true.
Otherwise, the case does not advance.
Around 400 years ago, there was quarrel in the
streets of Varanasi. Two men who were quarrelling,
were arrested and brought before the magistrate in
the court. Each one of the men claimed that the
other had attacked him first. So the magistrate
called for a witness who had seen the fight. There
was only one witness and he was known to be a sage.
When he was asked to explain what he had seen, he
replied, "He who sees, speaks not and he who
speaks, sees not." Do you understand the meaning?
The eyes have seen the fight, but the eyes cannot
speak. It is the mouth that speaks, but the mouth
cannot see anything. Therefore, what could be said?
This witness was Kabir and he was speaking the
truth about witnessing.
The Witness sees nothing, so He has nothing to say.
Yet, everybody speaks of the Self and of ultimate
Reality. The saints and scriptures speak of this.
They all say: "You are Reality. You are the Self.
You are being-consciousness-bliss. You are the
Source." And your ears have listened to all this
very well. But who witnesses all these concepts? No
one knows that Witness who resides in everyone's
Heart.
To whom do we attribute all individual activity?
You say, "I did it" or "I saw it." But who is this
"I"? When you say "I", something is conscious of
this "I". The Witness of "I" is not the "I". So,
who is this Witness that is conscious of the first
thought, the "I"-thought? The Witness is not
something you can see or describe. People say that
they understand that they are the Witness, but they
do not truly understand that the Witness is also
witnessing this so-called understanding. The
Witness is Omnipresent and is existence itself. It
is within everyone's Heart, and even within each
and every atom. It is existence itself and It is
always available here and now. However you may try
to understand It, you will fail. The Witness can
only witness Itself with the Grace of the Guru.
When the Guru is happy with a disciple, he will
hand him the key to this treasure.
There are those, who after listening to the Truth,
claim that they have gone beyond Buddhahood. They
mistake their "understanding" for the Truth. A
child is happy with just one piece of chocolate.
There is a Punjabi tale that describes this. One
day, a musk deer hears about some precious musk and
decides to go looking for it, not knowing that it
is located in his navel. He goes around smelling
each tree, each rock without any success. No one
tells him that this musk can be found in his navel.
A jackal decides to profit from the deer's
ignorance, so climbs up some hill, in California
[laughter], picks up any old stone from the
ground and starts telling others that he has found
some precious, rare musk that no one else has ever
found. He tells them that it is even better than
the musk from the musk deer and that even Buddha
had not found it. Jackals will bark for some time
until everyone discovers that they are just liars
who have found nothing.
So when a worthy disciple is very beautiful,
innocent, unattached, the Guru hands him true
knowledge of the Witness. The Guru is one who is
deeply in love with the Witness and hands over this
treasure only to those who deserve it. Witness
reveals Itself to Itself and you will witness this
if you are very beautiful. If this Witness falls in
love with you, then you will become one with It.
The Witness never does anything apart from
witnessing. When you give up all that you want, all
your intentions to gain anything anew, all your
false notions, all your past burdens, and all your
practices, then you will become one with the
Witness. Empty your pockets and It will reveal
Itself to you. Merge into It without any hesitation
or doubt. It is so simple! No notion and no
doubt.
Why are we not aware of our own Self which is here
and now, ever-present existence-being-bliss? What
are the reasons for not knowing our own Self? What
are the impediments which restrict us from knowing
our true being? First of all, we have acquired many
merits in order to be in satsang, and in satsang we
have to discover what it is that obstructs our
freedom. In truth, we are always free because Self
is never absent. Self is the Witness of everything,
of all activities. Self is absolutely without
association. Association with others, attachment to
others, is the main impediment that prevents us
from knowing who we are.
Self is the nearest of all, the dearest of all,
even nearer to us than our own breath. So, what are
the main factors which stand in our way and prevent
us from knowing our own Self? The first factor is
our attachment to the body, thinking: "I am the
body." The second factor is prana, thinking: "I am
the breath, I am the life-force within the body."
The third factor is the mind, the fourth is the
intellect, and the last factor is our constant
seeking for pleasure and bliss through the senses.
So, we are attached to these five factors.
Now, who witnesses the thought, "I am the body,
prana, mind, intellect and I enjoy"? All
attachments come from our latent tendencies, but we
do not know this. We simply ignore all our subtle
attachments. Even saying "I belong to this
beautiful country" is an impediment. All the latent
tendencies in the mind have to be rejected. When
you disassociate yourself from all these
tendencies, such as "I am the body" or "I am the
mind", you return to your blissful Self, the
Source. Body and mind belong to you, but they are
not you. Who witnesses the body and the happiness
and unhappiness of the mind? Who witnesses all the
objects? Body, mind and intellect are all outside
of you and are therefore objects. You must discover
the subject, the substratum which is
existence-being-bliss. Who is this? You must turn
your face around and identify with the Source, this
Witness which is witnessing the body, mind and
intellect. It witnesses everything. It is who you
are, but due to ignorance, you do not see It.
Ignorance hides the Source, it hides your true
being.
So, what is the cause of this beginningless
ignorance which has the power of veiling the Source
by projecting an illusion? A snake is projected
when in fact you are looking at a rope. This is the
very power of the the illusion, of maya. You see
that which is not. This is ignorance, the veiling
of the Self by illusion. "I am the body" is just a
projection, and so are mind, senses, intellect,
prana and objects. We are all only looking at a
projection. Turn your face around so that you are
face to face with the supreme Self. The individual
self has been projected due to not knowing the
supreme Self. This is exemplified by the rope and
the snake. As you do not know it is a rope, you
project a snake. But through reasoning, the snake
disappears and you see that it is actually a rope.
A small cloud can hide the sun, which is must
bigger than the earth. This is ignorance, the
beginningless illusion, or maya. So how do we
dispel this ignorance so as to see that "I am the
eternal Self"? This ignorance, this illusion is the
only obstruction.
Those who are worthy and who have acquired a
mountain of merits will enquire into the Truth of
existence-being-bliss. Those who truly desire
freedom here and now will reason out that anything
that changes is not who I am. All names and forms
change, including the individual self which is the
cause of the beginningless illusion. Saying "I am
free" is a also projection because there is still a
sense of an individual "I". Who is free? So how do
we reject this individual self and return to the
supreme Self, which is
existence-consciousness-bliss? Very few beings will
surrender their individual self, even though it is
very easy. Only a few, rare beings will cross over
the ocean of birth and death. Even intelligent
scholars will not surrender their egos because they
are too attached to books of knowledge. Scriptures
are also impediments to freedom. One must read,
reflect, meditate on true knowledge and then
experience Truth. Scriptures have trapped many
people and are not the Truth, so reject them.
Direct experience of your own Self is far more
valuable than just reading about It.
Constant reflection and meditation on the Self
until your last breath will liberate you from the
samsara forever. After liberation, you will have
the firm conviction that the "I am", the personal
self, is an illusion and that the samsara is also
an illusion. All is your own projection, a trick of
the mind. You will remain quiet in your eternal,
blissful Self and you will never return to the
samsara again. Self is here and now. Have this firm
conviction at all times: "I am eternal Self, I am
eternal Reality." Your long journey back home ends
here, in satsang, in association with Truth,
beauty, love and existence. Fall in love with the
unchanging, permanent nectar of Self. Do it now and
today!
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