Satyopanisad

[Guest guest]

Swami! We come across words like manas, mind, buddhi, intellect, citta,

consciousness, and aham kara, egoism. How are we to understand and correlate

them? How do they differ from one another? It is our good fortune that Swami

explains in simple terms ever so complex.

 

Here is an illustration. Consider a Brahmin. When he conducts ceremonies like

weddings, you call him purohit, priest; when he reads out from the almanac at

your home the tithi, lunar phase, the varam day of the week, naksatra, star,

etc; you call him the pancanga Brahmin; when he prepares food in your home, you

call him the brahmin cook.

 

Another illustration. Your wife addresses you in Telugu as e mandi , " Oh, you!

Please, Sir! " because, addressing the husband by name is not considered proper.

Your child calls you `Father' and your student addresses you as 'Sir': But, you

are, after all, only one individual, aren't you! One and the same faculty has

different names: manas or mind when engaged in thinking, citta or awareness in a

state of equanimity devoid of plans or decisions; buddhi or intellect while

exercising discrimination; and aham kara or egoism when introducing oneself or

referring to oneself as `I' . All these are one, but named differently according

to their function.

 

What is to be controlled is the mind. When you have that nigraham, control, you

obtain God's anugraham, grace. Once you consider something as evil, do not allow

it to enter the mind. The behaviour of trees and animals is regulated by

prakrti, Nature. Only man is disobeying the commands of God and has become

depraved. There is only one solution.

 

Another little illustration. Tie up kamadhenu, the wish - fulfilling cow, of

your body with the pas'a, rope of prema, love, to the post called amna, chanting

the name of the Lord. That is enough. You gain control over the mind. Then, on

the citta, awareness, devoid of the turmoil of thoughts, is imprinted the form

of God. Buddhi undertakes fundamental discrimination; the `I' which has been

egoistic cognises its own true nature as atma and realises the innermost Self in

all beings. This is adhyatmika , spirituality.