Maharshi's Gospel: The Jnani and the World - 2

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cont...

 

Maharshi: It is quite immaterial to the jnani or ajnani if he perceives the

world or not. It is seen by both, but their viewpoints differ.

 

Disciple: If the jnani and the ajnani perceive the world in like manner,

where is the difference between them?

 

Maharshi: Seeing the world, the jnani sees the Self, which is the substratum

of all that is seen; the ajnani, whether he sees the world or not, is

ignorant of his true being, the Self.

Take the instance of moving pictures on the screen of the cinema show.

What is there in front of you before the play begins? Merely the screen. On

that screen you see the entire show, and for all appearances the pictures

are real. But go and try to take hold of them. What do you take hold of?

Merely the screen on which the pictures appeared so real. After the play,

when the pictures disappear, what remains? The screen again!

So with the Self. That alone exists; the pictures come and go. If you

hold on to the Self, you will not be deceived by the appearances of the

pictures. Nor does it matter at all if the pictures appear or disappear.

Ignoring the Self, the ajnani thinks the world is real, just as ignoring the

screen he sees merely the pictures, as if they existed apart from it. If

one knows that without the Seer there is nothing to be seen, just as there

are no pictures without the screen, one is not deluded. The jnani knows

that the screen, the pictures, and the sight thereof are but the Self. With

the pictures the Self is in its manifest form; without the pictures It

remains in the unmanifest form. To the jnani it is quite immaterial if the

Self is in the one form or the other. He is always the Self. But the ajnani,

seeing the jnani active, gets confounded.

 

 

(From Maharshi's Gospel, published by Sri Ramanasramam and available for

download from <http://www.ramana-maharshi.org/>

http://www.ramana-maharshi.org/ )