Aug 10, 2002, 12.00am IST,
RAMNATH NARAYANSWAMY.
Children have a special place in all the wisdom traditions of the world. The gospel according to Saint Luke says that people brought their babies to Jesus, asking him to place his hands on them in blessing. When his disciples tried to prevent the people from approaching their teacher, Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Do not stop them because the Kingdom of God belongs to them. Remember this! Whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it".
In a child, the thought of the ego, the first primal I-thought is present only at an infinitesimal level.
Identification with the body, the mind or the intellect is absent.
As we grow older, these identifications result in misery, unhappiness and suffering. That is why we often rue the passing of childhood. The primal I-thought is responsible for reinforcing the notion of I-am-the-doer, I-am-the-body, I-am-the-ego or I-am-the-intellect.
All these identifications result in suffering as they bring with them desire and attachment. The phenomenal world is mistaken for reality. The child is the father of man because the child does not suffer from ego, identity or fear — the characteristic concomitants of adulthood. That is why there is something divine in the innocence of a child.
Sri Ramana Maharishi, looking at a child in the prayer hall, reportedly remarked: "One can attain the bliss of Brahman only when the mind becomes pure and humble, like the mind of this child".
The image of the child in world scripture is therefore a powerful symbol of purity, innocence, simplicity and humility.
As St Augustine said, "Let your old-age be childlike and your childhood like old age; so that neither may your wisdom be with pride, nor your humility without wisdom".
The Brihadaranyaka Upa- nishad exhorts the Brahman or the one who is steeped in Brahman, to "reject erudition and live as a child".
Sri Ramakrishna affirmed the same counsel when he said, "So long as one does not become simple like a child, one does not get divine illumination. Forget all the worldly knowledge that thou has acquired and become as ‘ignorant’ as a child and then you will get divine wisdom".
Swami Ramdas recollects that, "When we were children we were innocent. But there was in us a seed of ignorance which grew as we grew, and finally overpowering us, cast away our innocent nature and led us astray. We were thereafter caught in the toils of desire and action and we move in a vicious circle of transitory pleasure and pain. It is necessary to hand ourselves over to the Divine and through His grace burn up the seed which is the cause of our misery and bondage and regain our lost childhood. Once we get it back, it cannot be taken away from us. The burnt seed does not germinate. We will remain pure children for all our lives".
We find similar evocations in the Buddhist tradition as well. "Abandon thought and thinking", said the Sage Saraha. "Be just like a child. Be devoted to your master’s teaching and the Innate will become manifest".
Indeed, the essence of Zen according to Takuan, founder of the Tokaiji Zen temple in Tokyo, is having "the heart and soul of a little child".
Finally, a Tibetan master declares that the pupil "must regain the child state he hath lost before the sound can fall upon his ears".
In a way, the Divine Musician sings to us through the purity of the hearts of children — we can hear Him if we only listen.
So, the way to enlightenment lies in rediscovering the child in ourselves.
SACRED SPACE
Aug 10, 2002, 12.00am IST
Vision of the Divine
For seeing you ablaze with all the colours of the rainbow, touching the sky, with gaping mouths and wide, flaming eyes, my heart in me is shaken. O God, I have lost all certainty, all peace. Your mouths and their terrible tusks evoke the world in conflagration. Looking at them I can no longer orient myself. There is no refuge. O Lord of Gods, dwelling place of the world, give me your grace.
Bhagavad Gita 11.3-25
****************************************************
Find the eternal object of your quest within your soul. Enough have you wandered during the long period of your quest! Dark and weary must have been the ages of your searching in ignorance and groping in helplessness. At last when you turn your gaze inward, suddenly you realise that the bright light of faith and lasting truth was shining around you. With rapturous joy, you find the soul of the universe, the eternal object of your quest. Your searching mind at last finds the object of the search within your own heart. Your inner vision is illuminated by this new realisation.
Yajur Veda
****************************************************
Man has two eyes. One only sees what moves in fleeting time, the other what is eternal and divine.
Angelus Silesius
****************************************************
RAMNATH NARAYANSWAMY.
Children have a special place in all the wisdom traditions of the world. The gospel according to Saint Luke says that people brought their babies to Jesus, asking him to place his hands on them in blessing. When his disciples tried to prevent the people from approaching their teacher, Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Do not stop them because the Kingdom of God belongs to them. Remember this! Whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it".
In a child, the thought of the ego, the first primal I-thought is present only at an infinitesimal level.
Identification with the body, the mind or the intellect is absent.
As we grow older, these identifications result in misery, unhappiness and suffering. That is why we often rue the passing of childhood. The primal I-thought is responsible for reinforcing the notion of I-am-the-doer, I-am-the-body, I-am-the-ego or I-am-the-intellect.
All these identifications result in suffering as they bring with them desire and attachment. The phenomenal world is mistaken for reality. The child is the father of man because the child does not suffer from ego, identity or fear — the characteristic concomitants of adulthood. That is why there is something divine in the innocence of a child.
Sri Ramana Maharishi, looking at a child in the prayer hall, reportedly remarked: "One can attain the bliss of Brahman only when the mind becomes pure and humble, like the mind of this child".
The image of the child in world scripture is therefore a powerful symbol of purity, innocence, simplicity and humility.
As St Augustine said, "Let your old-age be childlike and your childhood like old age; so that neither may your wisdom be with pride, nor your humility without wisdom".
The Brihadaranyaka Upa- nishad exhorts the Brahman or the one who is steeped in Brahman, to "reject erudition and live as a child".
Sri Ramakrishna affirmed the same counsel when he said, "So long as one does not become simple like a child, one does not get divine illumination. Forget all the worldly knowledge that thou has acquired and become as ‘ignorant’ as a child and then you will get divine wisdom".
Swami Ramdas recollects that, "When we were children we were innocent. But there was in us a seed of ignorance which grew as we grew, and finally overpowering us, cast away our innocent nature and led us astray. We were thereafter caught in the toils of desire and action and we move in a vicious circle of transitory pleasure and pain. It is necessary to hand ourselves over to the Divine and through His grace burn up the seed which is the cause of our misery and bondage and regain our lost childhood. Once we get it back, it cannot be taken away from us. The burnt seed does not germinate. We will remain pure children for all our lives".
We find similar evocations in the Buddhist tradition as well. "Abandon thought and thinking", said the Sage Saraha. "Be just like a child. Be devoted to your master’s teaching and the Innate will become manifest".
Indeed, the essence of Zen according to Takuan, founder of the Tokaiji Zen temple in Tokyo, is having "the heart and soul of a little child".
Finally, a Tibetan master declares that the pupil "must regain the child state he hath lost before the sound can fall upon his ears".
In a way, the Divine Musician sings to us through the purity of the hearts of children — we can hear Him if we only listen.
So, the way to enlightenment lies in rediscovering the child in ourselves.
SACRED SPACE
Aug 10, 2002, 12.00am IST
Vision of the Divine
For seeing you ablaze with all the colours of the rainbow, touching the sky, with gaping mouths and wide, flaming eyes, my heart in me is shaken. O God, I have lost all certainty, all peace. Your mouths and their terrible tusks evoke the world in conflagration. Looking at them I can no longer orient myself. There is no refuge. O Lord of Gods, dwelling place of the world, give me your grace.
Bhagavad Gita 11.3-25
****************************************************
Find the eternal object of your quest within your soul. Enough have you wandered during the long period of your quest! Dark and weary must have been the ages of your searching in ignorance and groping in helplessness. At last when you turn your gaze inward, suddenly you realise that the bright light of faith and lasting truth was shining around you. With rapturous joy, you find the soul of the universe, the eternal object of your quest. Your searching mind at last finds the object of the search within your own heart. Your inner vision is illuminated by this new realisation.
Yajur Veda
****************************************************
Man has two eyes. One only sees what moves in fleeting time, the other what is eternal and divine.
Angelus Silesius
****************************************************
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