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Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com)

 

Ignorance, cause of man's bondage

 

CHENNAI, OCT. 11. The intent of the scriptures is to enable man

to realise his spiritual nature and thereby shed his ignorance

which is responsible for the mistaken notion he entertains about

himself. Instead of the Self (Atman) which is eternal, the body-

mind-intellect personality is identified as the ``I'' and hence

he fails to recognise his true nature. Liberation involves

removal of this ignorance when the Self becomes known. Hence

liberation is not a state to be attained strictly speaking,

though for purpose of understanding it is posited in this manner.

It is similar to the understanding that a dream is unreal after

waking up.

 

As long as the person is dreaming whatever he dreams appears

vivid and real to him and its illusory nature strikes him only on

waking up. Liberation is akin to this phenomenon. Out of

ignorance, the waking state is mistaken to be absolutely real

until it is also transcended and its relative nature understood

when the Self is realised. Liberation is thus only waking up to

one's true nature - the Self. A man of Self-realisation continues

to be as he has been before but unlike the ignorant person he

abides in his spiritual nature always.

 

In her discourse on the Katha Upanishad, Swamini Satyavratananda

said the Ultimate Reality was termed Brahman at the level of

macrocosm and as the Self (Atman) at the individual level. It

becomes apparent after Self-realisation that both are one unitive

consciousness. This awareness is a consequence of the realisation

of the Self. This Upanishad describes the nature of Reality in

depth using the analogy of a peepul tree. It is striking that the

same example has also been used in the Bhagavad Gita. The Reality

which is the material cause of this creation is similar to this

upturned tree with its roots above and the branches below. The

material cause of this cosmos is invisible like the roots of a

tree.

 

Sankaracharya in his commentary on this Upanishad draws many

parallels between this tree and the Supreme Reality. Both are

vast and their origin unknown. In the case of the tree, the

dilemma whether the seed is the cause of the tree or instead the

tree is the cause of the seed cannot be answered. So also is the

case with Reality which is eternal without a beginning or an end.

Just as the tree has many branches, this cosmos also has many

universes. If the meaning of the tree's existence is the fruits

it gives, then the world makes it possible for human beings to

enjoy the result of their actions in the form of joys and

sorrows.

 

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