Spiritual Realisation Is Beyond Theory

22 December 2001, 12:06am IST
ASHUTOSHJI MAHARAJ.

Modern philosophers, intellectuals, clerics, theologians and ecclesiastical giants have said and written a lot on ways and means of god-realisation. whatever they say by way of advancing theories and treatises contain only verbal instruction. theory is not capable of producing the desired results. theory sans practical experience of divinity inherent in a human being is like stuffing peoples’ minds with prolific descriptions of atman and paramatman only to eventually be confronted with questions like where is he? how i can see him? did verbal instructions and assurances by lord krishna in the bhagavad gita pacify arjuna? no, they did not. in chapters one to 10 of the gita, lord krishna replied to a plethora of questions from arjuna. this constituted shiksha — verbal education. the replies, however, did not satisfy an agitated, confused and wavering arjuna. krishna’s replies generated further queries. although the answering authority was the lord himself, even then verbal knowledge could not satisfy, convince and pacify an indecisive arjuna. until then, arjuna identified krishna as a mere physical body. all exhortations and teachings of the lord did not have a lasting effect. this was in reality a divine sport of the supreme brahmin in human embodiment. he wanted to show humankind that attainment of god is beyond verbal knowledge, and actually belongs to the realm of practical experience. eventually, the lord blessed arjuna with the divine eye to make him see his cosmic form. physical eyes can just see the outward form. the inner soul can only be perceived by the eye of the spirit. the celestial vision is not a mental construct but the revelation of the metaphysical truth, beyond the finite mind and intellect. on seeing the vision of god through divya chakshu or divine eyes, our horizon widens and we move beyond the earthly tumults and sorrows that mesmerise us so easily. a human being is fundamentally and essentially divine in nature. however, the divinity in man is shrouded and veiled by the endless chain of thoughts and desires. but these thoughts and desires can be eliminated. vedanta envisages removal of encrustation of incessant flow of thoughts and desires and unfolding of inherent divinity of man. atman or the real self of man constitute the invisible energising force within. it is only on knowing and realising the indwelling spirit within, that our compulsive habit of identifying ourselves with the gross body, mind and intellect ceases. theory followed by practical experience truly confirm, affirm and solidify the abstract truth that is sought to be instructed. simply knowing that the supreme spirit dwells in all beings as atman is not sufficient. it is the vision in practical sense which would arouse unflinching faith. we, thus, need some outside help that can give the abstract metaphysical truth a visible reality. this outside help comes from the perfect spiritual master of the time who has himself known and seen the metaphysical form of god by unravelling the profoundest mystery. the cosmic vision like the one experienced by arjuna is not a myth or a legend. we know of other such cosmic visions akin to the vision of arjuna. to quote a few of them from other lands — the vision of saint joan of arc, constantine’s vision, vision of st saul and st hildegard and transfiguration of jesus. vedanta is the science of life. while the outside physical world of objects is the domain of the physical science, the field of study of vedanta is the inner world. our inner realm is beyond the comprehension of sense organs, gross body, subtle mind and intellect. the ground on which a physical science claims superiority over other streams of secular knowledge is that its theories are based on and verifiable through laboratory tests. the spirituality contained in the vedantic treatises is not merely the delight and ecstasy of academicians and philosophers. the domain of vedanta is the metaphysical world of ultimate reality. until one sees the cosmic vision within oneself, one will not comprehend the true essence of the cosmic process and destiny. the vision is the revelation of the inherent divinity in man. this super-sensuous experience is instant and spontaneous in every aspirant at the time of diksha or initiation. not that it happened only in the remote past. it is possible even today provided one has the urge in his or her heart.
(the author is the founder, divya jyoti jagriti sansthan, new delhi)