Guest guest Posted December 27, 2003 Report Share Posted December 27, 2003 Namaste Shri Sunder, Thanks for bringing up the term 'guDAkesha' -- 'conqueror of sleep' (in your two messages of 16 Dec). I find the term very interesting, because there is a sense in which enlightenment is simply a liberation from our habitual superimposition of tamas upon deep sleep. That is how I would interpret the Gita 2.69, to which you refer. I would translate this stanza (somewhat freely) like this: The one whose balance is complete stands wide awake in what is dark unconscious night, for any being seen created in the world. Created beings are awake to what a sage sees as a night where true awareness is submerged in dreams of blind obscurity. So, when you ask, "does it mean one who has conquered sleep is enlightened, or that one who is enlightened has conquered sleep?", I would be inclined to answer with a wholehearted yes. But, when you go on to ask, "Is it a yogic 'siddhi'?", I would (like Shri Madathil) say no. For the falsely tamasic appearance of sleep is not conquered through any cultivated power of mind. Instead, it gets spontaneously dissolved through a clear understanding of the objectless nature of true consciousness, which shines unmixed in depth of sleep and at the changeless ground of all experience. In fact, Shri Atmananda kept pointing out that establishment in truth is simply a matter of being spontaneously 'asleep to the whole world, and wakeful to the "I".' Some quotes to this effect are appended below, from Shri Nitya Tripta's 'Notes on Spiritual Discourses of Shri Atmananda'. Ananda - Real sleep [1952, note 365] Strict inactivity is sleep. In relaxation one should have something to hold on to. If you hold on to the 'I' and relax the senses and mind, you get to real sleep. Let the mind be asleep to the whole world, and wakeful to the 'I'. - How to be awake in deep sleep? [1953, note 87] To be really awake is not to be awake with sense organs or mind, but with Consciousness. Give up the waking dream and be awake to the real Self. - Why does not the experience of deep sleep help one spiritually? [1953, note 154] Because the ordinary man looks upon deep sleep objectively. If deep sleep loses its sense of objectivity and becomes subjective, you are free. - Suppose I take the thought: 'I am pure Consciousness.' Will it take me to samadhi? [1955, note 14] No. Not always. If you take it only as a thought it will lead you to samadhi. But if you know that Consciousness can never be made an object of thought, you will be thrown into a state where the mind expires, and you will be left in your real nature as in deep sleep. It is no samadhi at all, but far beyond. - [From 1956, note 120] .... Deep sleep comes involuntarily, and without the help of discrimination. Therefore it disappears, after a while. Establish the same state voluntarily and with discrimination. When once you visualize it this way, it will never disappear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 27, 2003 Report Share Posted December 27, 2003 respected sirs, oh no! THE SLEEPLESS IS NOT THE REALIZED ONE. i wd say the insomniac is the farthest from a still mind! . poor soul! sorry to interrupt the stalvaerts. a.v.krshnan. ______________________ Messenger - Communicate instantly..."Ping" your friends today! Download Messenger Now http://uk.messenger./download/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 28, 2003 Report Share Posted December 28, 2003 Namaste Krishnan-ji. Going up thread, I notice that you were referring to Anandaji's message. However, I couldn't figure out which specific statement therein promted your post. Will you kindly clarify? PraNAms. Madathil Nair advaitin, av krshnan <avkrshnan> wrote: > oh no! > THE SLEEPLESS IS NOT THE REALIZED ONE. > > i wd say the insomniac is the farthest > from a still mind! . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 2, 2004 Report Share Posted January 2, 2004 Namaste Anandaji, Thank you very much for bringing out the meaning so clearly. Regards, Sunder advaitin, Ananda Wood <awood@v...> wrote:> > So, when you ask, "does it mean one who has conquered sleep is > enlightened, or that one who is enlightened has conquered sleep?", I > would be inclined to answer with a wholehearted yes. > > But, when you go on to ask, "Is it a yogic 'siddhi'?", I would (like > Shri Madathil) say no. For the falsely tamasic appearance of sleep is > not conquered through any cultivated power of mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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