Ashtavakra Gita Ch. 18, Vs. 73-86 Commentary and Contemplation - 12th September 2017

Verse 75 is just an abrupt verse, as you can tell. I've never read this before. 75 is: When a weak man gives up meditation, he falls prey to whims and desires. That's it. That's my entire paragraph, the shortest paragraph. When a weak man gives up meditation, he falls prey to whims and desires. So probably what happens is that one of the students came to Ashtavakra and said, 'You know, you said no longer do you need meditation, and meditation also perpetuates the meditator identity. Give up on all practices like that.' And then, 'I have given up my meditation and look at what's happened to me. I'm getting attracted to all the various objects in this world and just getting caught in all the emotions.' That's why he said, 'Sir, when a weak man gives up meditation, he falls prey to whims and desires.' That is why this knowledge of Ashtavakra was traditionally only shared with those who were at some level established in satsang. They had openness to the idea that they are not a limited entity. What does it mean by openness? Are you open to the idea that you are not something which is limited? Are you open to the idea you are not something at all, not a thing? Is it possible that you are not a thing? Even a slight 'yes', then that much is enough for satsang. Is it possible that you are not a limited entity, not a thing? Is it possible that you don't have boundaries? Is it possible that you were never born and you will never die?

Notice all your 'buts'. All the 'buts' will come from resistance to this idea, resistance to this recognition. This truth will ultimately have to prevail because when you check really, this is what you find about yourself. When you check on the nature of this witness, you won't find a thing sitting there. When you go looking for reality really, you won't find something sitting there. As I say that, when you bow down in your heart, who do you encounter? Do you encounter a person? The Satguru who is in your heart? Even hearing truth, a man of dull intellect holds on to illusion. Through effort and suppression, he may appear outwardly composed, but inside he craves the world.

I remember this beautiful interaction that happened one of the first few days when I was in Rishikesh. This one comes to Guruji. Guruji is sitting on the hot seat. This one performs pranam. Guruji invites them to check who is this 'I', and he says, 'But I'm not the doer. How can I do the inquiry?' Then Guruji says something like this—I'm paraphrasing this—'So what do you want?' He says, 'I want nothing.' Guruji says, 'Lies. What you speak is lies. You are filled to the brim with desire.' Just speaking these big words—this is what can happen when we get very Advaita in our concepts but we still haven't dropped the limited notion of what we are. As long as you still consider yourself to be something limited, this real desire will continue to want something. Limited identity also wants to be seen as something special and wants to become something special, filled to the brim with desire. Because the ego also actually cannot be you. This 'me' is a mystery also because it's only an aspect of consciousness itself. It cannot deal with its limitation, so it wants more and more and more. As I said, where there is duality, there is bound to be desire and aversion.

I'm saying the same: that there is no truth and nothing to want, nothing to do, and yet all doing can continue to happen. Others may see him working; the sage does nothing. Knowledge has vanished; therefore he finds no reason to do or see. Others may see him working; the sage does nothing. Knowledge has vanished; therefore he finds no reason to do or see. The same thing, authorship, which we looked at for a long time. The sage is fearless, unassailable, no darkness, no light, nothing to lose, nothing. The sage is fearless, unassailable, no darkness, no light, nothing to lose, nothing. We are beyond all this play of opposites, of doing and not doing, of effort and not effort, of bondage and freedom. We will be beyond this darkness and light. These are also a play of consciousness and a play of all qualities. This is your reality, and you see that you are beyond all qualities. What can you feel? I've been asking recently, isn't it? What can actually play in this world? Can it make a scratch or a dent on awareness? And if nothing can make a scratch or a dent on you, then what are we protecting? What are we defending? What are we attacking?

Patience, discrimination, even fearlessness—what use are these to the yogi? His nature cannot be described; he is not a person. Patience, discrimination, even fearlessness—what use are these to the yogi? His nature cannot be described; he is not a person. So really, we cannot place a quality on this sage, although in outward expression the sage might seem to have certain qualities. But in reality, they are empty of these notions about themselves. Patience, discrimination, even fearlessness—so many times those who are new in spirituality can get a bit confused. 'How is it that this one who's supposed to be awake is behaving in this way? How is it that what I was expecting is something else?' Those who are coming, how is it that in many great sages, when they used to have satsang, I feel like somebody asks a question and they get angry at the question? You see, 'Get out right now!' Somebody knew that the limited space in this week is taking up space. 'Get up!' And then makes a man become... 'Oh, you came? Okay, sit right next to the door because I might want to throw you out again. I don't want to disturb everybody else.' So how is this possible? This is like a child. All the expressions are a possibility in the sage. It is in no way that 'I must behave like this'. But you see, there is no such thing. Consciousness will find that the outer expression, even sometimes like a child, this is one thing, and when reaction comes, this is the same thing. A bit of irritation can come pretty obviously. It is born from something, and yet I feel like it is important to be in this world also to make the point that this aspect of the predictability of the sage cannot be used as an excuse for any sort of exploitation. So the sage cannot exploit anyone, cannot manipulate anyone. Someone here, they don't play. They may be able to say momentarily an irritation, but all feeling of oneness will be more well-seen. Never to seem, can never give themselves to exploit any of the children. It is not possible. It can only be possible if there is a sense of two. If the sense of two-ness is gone, exploitation is impossible.

No heaven, no hell, no liberation for the living. In short, consciousness is void. What more can be said? No heaven, no hell, no liberation for the living. In short, consciousness is void. What more can be said? So when we come to this emptiness and feel like we had this long discussion the other day about void and not void, the foundation sometimes can be confusing. When we are empty of all qualities, including any quality that a mind can think up about being a void, this is important for me. Void—you think of void, what do you imagine? Many of you could be imagining this big black empty space. But this one is empty even of this quality. These qualities like this—like 'I must come to this'—is there awareness of a color? Is it big or small? Is it light or dark? It is no heaven, no hell, no liberation for the living.

The foundation sometimes can be confusing. We speak of all qualities, including any quality that a mind can think up about being a void. This is important for me. Void—you think of what? They imagine if any of you could be imagining this big black empty space. But this one is empty even of this quality. These qualities, like 'I must come to this,' it's very... is this awareness of a color? Is it big or small? Is it light or dark? It is no heaven, no hell, no liberation for the living, and so on. Consciousness is so that you can avoid being mind-led. I know that when you hear 'empty' or 'void,' the mind will come up with an imagination of a vast emptiness beyond quality. We want diamonds or hell, no heaven, no liberation for the living. In short, consciousness is void. What more can be said?

The sage is neither yearning for fulfillment nor dreads non-attainment. He is cool and beaming with... maybe more dreads over non-attainment. He is cool and beaming with no physical desire and aversion. Detached from desire, the sage neither rejects peace nor blames or weakens. Equally content in happiness and misery, he would march indifferent whatever might be the situation, whatever might be the life events. They remind you: this body, other worlds, hearts might be appearing the way a motion... brother, this weed is not resisting. You might even the taste of anything ever might come is allowed. I think the nominal is bigger than consciousness. I think the nominal can be bigger than consciousness because everything is disappearing and disappearing within itself. The being has nothing to fear. Consciousness has nothing to fear. Nothing can appear which is stronger than it. All that appears derives its strength from you, from being consciousness.

The sage neither rejects the world nor desires self. He is free of joy and sorrow. He does not live and cannot die. The sage neither rejects the world nor desires self. He is free of joy and sorrow. He does not live and cannot die. We looked at all these aspects. The wise one lives without hope, okay? He has no attachment to his children, wife, or anyone. Pleasure means nothing to him. His life is glorious. The wise one lived without hope. It's not a hopeless life. Hope is a form of desire. 'I hope this is what happens to me.' 'I hope I don't have any visitors today.'

Guruji tells this very beautiful story. One evening, he said one evening that he was just tired of meeting everyone. He just wanted to... there was no satsang, no visitors, nobody. He said, 'This evening, I'm just going to have this nice warm bath and I'm not meeting anyone over this.' So that evening, we had no appointments. Very all cheer. He makes this nice English bath, gets into the water, starting through the body, starts to relax. And as all of you might predict by now, the doorbell rings. Ding-dong. There's Guru. 'No, today I should not open the door.' The bell rings again. He says, 'This day's no... where is my relaxation time? I'm not moving now, doing this.' Then two minutes later, this contemplation arose to him: 'But who am I to decide what my evening is like? Who am I to desire a particular event to happen or not happen?'

So this intuitive realization came that he's got to be open to whatever comes. And next time the bell rang after a few minutes—this guy means he came back—the bell rang again. And this time, in the old goodness, something moved and it opened the door. And here were his friends. He says that they came in, and that's one of the best evenings he's ever had, the best time. This is they are not deciding on a particular outcome. He has no attachment to his children, wife, or anyone. Pleasure... worried about the hundred percent because we make a benchmark out of this. 'I'm still attached to my children. I'm not yet...' For austerity's sake, notice that we will become more and more aware of these attachments, and this is all this play of the human boy. And also, we start to get a lot more space to dinner.

And we think about attachment to not just national ideas, to think about, 'What if they were taken away from me?' That was some grief, something like this. See, we think of attachment in that way, but actually, if you look at our relationships even more, the nature of attachment—the subtler attachment which is the cause of more suffering—is the attachment that this relationship should be this way, they should be like that, this is how they should behave. The thing about not giving freedom to the world. That attached to how a partner should be, attached to how our children should be, anyone. Attached to how the sun-god should be, as to how the master should be to put this. And you start to find that as more and more freedom is found, so not attached to the idea our children should be, our partner should be, how anyone should be. These notions started on the way very naturally of the student. Let them close relationships, some bad memories, children optimize, something happens naturally. And it is experience actually. Can we have you start with being free of our expectations of how they should be and how they should behave? At sea, which my children would open the door little softly.

See, it wanders about as he pleases and lives on whatever may come. See, it wanders about as he pleases and lives on whatever may come. Contentment ever dwells in his heart, and when the sun sets, he rests where he is. He wanders about as he pleases and lives on whatever may come, and then endeavor dwells in his heart, and when the sun sets, he rests for you. So, King, more bigger is actually irrelevant. We talked about this pronouncing in modern officer and said that you don't really have to renounce the world as long as we can renounce our limited identity. And soon, whether after that you are in a palace or you're in the hut doesn't really matter. There is no prerequisite for freedom except this openness to be open to the reality of what you are.

Rooted in being, no thought of being born or reborn, the great soul is indifferent to the death or birth of his body. Rooted in being, no thought of being born or reborn, the great soul is indifferent to the death or birth. This one now, what is happening? This because of spiritual, beautiful spiritual concepts, there can seem to be an aversion to having to having another birth. 'I don't want to come back in this world again. I want to come to the end of the cycle of birth and death.' But actually, as you start more and more to recognize your true position, you start to see that nothing moves without your will as consciousness. You see that whether you have more dreams, whether you have no dreams... then I'm just wondering, is this the last dream you'll have? A million more really doesn't matter. What is unchanging is the Self. This is the recognition: you are unchanging, unmoving one. And this one truly does not have reference in that way.

I'm going to be well that the dynamic play starts when it has to and it ends when it has to. The point where there is fatigue with this experiencing, then whatever the experience might be, sleep is calling. She said you might be on your wedding night, the arm look your beloved, and yet when you are done with the experiencing of this world, sleep is falling. And not even the arms of your beloved... if you were wait this whole universe, it is always I think to experience, to taste desire, aversion. That you are unchanging truths, then for some reason which cannot be articulated, although the life we cannot even call it a primal urge within yourself for something more articulate to do reason, the image is this sense of being again. Then time to experience begins anomaly world. The bond from the witness, you mean to see how there is the appearance of this phenomenal play. The body appears, mind says this body is you. Awareness noting a change, that's why this entire infinity of the phenomenal play hears out of it, and yet the Self remains unchanged. Therefore, one concerned with how many times this whole cycle will happen, but it is not held hostage. This is not that you are in a hostage situation or in the cycle of death and... this is also being caught in the cycle of birth and death is a concept of the idea of who you are, not the reality of you. How can the one without families be pertinent? Who has taken birth? Who is time? Only when you cook, like I said, only when you put a limited notion of yourself do these ideas apply.

Yes, the question. Nice. Consciousness, can you speak on rooted in being? How to be rooted in nowhere?

Being is synonymously with the sense of presence, I am. She's like I said, what Maharaj had said once to tell me one thing: stay with the sense I am. And I just kept my attention since I am, I discovered that which is beyond even desire. So this is that kind of instruction. So being, beautiful being is how to... when I say can you stop being, attention naturally goes to the sense of presence that exists this now. I said often that in my case, maybe my attention span was not so good. So when I would hear this instruction, 'stay with the sense I am,' Maharaj said, 'I was just with the sense I am for three years.' Just three years. And our screen, just three years? I cannot even just do just three minutes. So there are some, you see, also understand for them it is very natural to stay with this sense I am and then do it. There are those like being who in fact this kind of attention span to really say mostly see... in fact, it became more of a frustration. 'Here I have to just keep my attention on me.' So now easier for me, and that's why I prescribe to the summer was to just remain open for everything to come and go. And then what happens in openness is that you will find attention is with presence without the sense of having to put it over there. We'll find them naturally.

It is finding which of the verse, those eighty-six, which is: rooted in being, no thought of being born or reborn, the great soul is indifferent to the death or birth of this body. You see that his being is the light of this universe, not dependent on the body. The mind has co-opted this sense of being and made it as if it is an aspect of the body itself. Many of you feel like this sense I am is contained in the body. That's why very often we do this on temptation, this checking: is it that this being is contained in the sensations of the body, or is it that the sensation of the body are contained in the game? Let me see that this being is beyond the body sensations of our body visuals. I am.

And as we recognize ourselves as this I am that I am, then the comings and doing looked about the... November so relevant. But he says, 'I'm glad you said you were unable to stay with I am and I try that. It feels strange that there are two and I am so always for you that this is beyond me.' Yes, hero, when I used to hear it before meeting Guruji, it was always this idea that I feel like the notion of the dual having to do this fine freedom I was getting perpetuate you. But I have seen also those who find it very natural to stay with it. So I'm not putting down one suggested as a practice, which is a beautiful thing. I am just saying that here I have to speak from experience here, and I find that there is no prerequisite. You don't have the attention span to stay with I am for three years, it doesn't mean that you cannot recognize the site. Otherwise, I would not be here sharing with you.

So I am mistaken in believing that the cycle of births and deaths comes to an end? This is confusing for me, please elaborate.

Yes, oh good. Yes, over there. And I actually behave also discuss how as to person, which is non-existent, we cannot have will, especially this idea of free will just falls away. But as being, the will of being, the will of God must be completely free. Otherwise, God Himself could be limited. Consciousness itself would be the neutral. Now when we say, and it is common to say in spirituality, but coming to the freedom is the end of the cycle of birth and death, then we are creating a limitation and being. Then we have to make excuses like, 'Okay, but the sages can we just come to help others around you.' Need all of that. Consciousness is created to experience itself in any which way it lands. If after...

Love being the will of God must be completely free. In other words, God Himself could not be limited; consciousness itself would be the neutral. So now when we say—and it is common to say in spirituality—that coming to the freedom is the end of the cycle of birth and death, then we are creating a limitation on being. Then we have to make excuses like, 'Okay, but the sages can just come to help others.' You don't need all of that. Consciousness is created to experience itself in any which way it likes. If after coming to the recognition of itself as Self, it chooses to play in a hundred million more lifetimes, nothing can stop it. It causes no trouble. Trouble is only from the personal identity. So who has made this rule for consciousness that it must be the end of the cycle of birth and death? Nobody can make such a rule.

No person was ever born. So this mistaken notion maybe it is derived from the idea that I no longer consider myself to be that which is subject to birth and death. Before I come to the end of the cycle of birth, I was considering myself to be a limited entity. This body, or this body is mine; so that falls under and goes through these cycles of birth. What is born will die. So as long as I've considered myself to be that, it can seem like I'm trapped in this cycle of birth and death. Once from my perspective also I've seen what I really am, I've seen that even this birth and death have been only the play of my will-less consciousness. Nothing can, not even scripture can define the will of consciousness. It is beyond all definition.

So we come out of the notion of being an entity which is being born and dying. So when we think now, when you're doing the inquiry, are you finding yourself to be that which is born and is dying? And another way to put it then could be that actually you were never really in the cycle of birth and death; there's only what you considered yourself to be. One of my heart's favorite questions was: what were you before you were born? And if you were dead, then who is it? Was there a you that was dead then? If there was a you that is born, where did that you come from? Some poet said, 'Oh, can I say I hug you? Wherever you come from, where will you go?' Who is it that was born and who is it that was dead? Break the cycle of birth and death. Come to the recognition of that which is beyond both of these: the unborn, undying one.

What we're recognizing now, if you find yourself to be this unborn, undying one, is that one really concerned about the cycle of birth and death? This being, this consciousness which takes birth—can we limit it? Can we say to our being, 'When you go to sleep tonight, don't ever come back again because I'm tired'? Not really. That which is being goes; being comes. Some of these things are said as reassurances in the Upanishads, but all this natural birth and rebirth and death, all of this ruler and subject to—I will break through the cycle of birth and death tragedy. We're going to watch this cycle of birth and death to see that you were never truly born.