Lucy Cornelssen - Investigation (4)

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Investigation

 

 

 

 

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This transitional ‘I’ is a moment of pure awareness, which

is aware only of itself as ‘I’, pure Identity in itself. Extended by

practice it becomes turiya, the ‘fourth’ of the normal states of

consciousness, the three others of which are the waking state,

dream and deep sleep. The waking state is consciousness in

movement, caused by sense perceptions and the activities of the

mind. In dreaming, consciousness is also moving under the

impact of dream-creations of the mind. In deep sleep,

consciousness is at rest, no thoughts, no pictures, no activity of

any kind. That means it is pure Consciousness. So it would be

Realisation, if we only would know how to become aware of it.

However we cannot; deep-sleep consciousness is covered up by

dullness. But since out of this ‘unconsciousness’ the transitional

‘I’ can arise in the shape of pure awareness of itself, as has been

shown, we think there must be a bridge between deep sleep and

the waking state.

 

There is none; and none is necessary. Actually there is only

one awareness underlying the three states of consciousness, being

their very substance and at the same time transcending them. It

is called turiya, the ‘fourth’, in relation to the ‘three states’, but

in itself turiyatita, ‘beyond the fourth’. Because of the turiya

being the substance of the other three states, we can become

aware of the transitional ‘I’ and in the same way we can realise

turiya as our true nature: Pure awareness, never waking or

sleeping, never being born or dying.

 

“Turiya is only another name for the Self. The three states

appear as fleeting phenomena on it and sink into it alone. Aware

of the waking, dreams and deep sleep states, we remain unaware

of our Self. Nevertheless the Self is here and now, it is the only

Reality.” (Talks, 353).

 

Somebody asked: ‘Relatively speaking, is not the sleep state

nearer to Pure Consciousness than the waking state?’

Ramana Maharshi: “Yes, in this sense: When passing from

sleep to waking the ‘I’-thought must start; the mind comes into

play; thoughts arise; then the functions of the body come into

operation; all these together make us say that we are awake. The

absence of all this evolution is the characteristic of sleep and

therefore it is nearer to Pure Consciousness than the waking

state.”

 

But one should not therefore desire to be always in sleep.

In the first place it is impossible, for it will necessarily alternate

with the other states. Secondly it cannot be the state of bliss in

which the jnani is, for his state is permanent and not alternating.

Moreover, the sleep state is not recognised to be one of awareness

by people; but the sage is always aware. Thus the sleep state

differs from the state in which the sage is established.

 

“Still more, the sleep state is free from thoughts and their

impression to the individual. It cannot be altered by one’s will

because effort is impossible in that condition. Although nearer

to Pure Consciousness, it is not fit for efforts to realise the Self.

 

“The incentive to realise can arise only in the waking state

and efforts can also be made only when one is awake. We learn

that the thoughts in the waking state form the obstacle to gaining

the stillness of sleep; stillness is the aim of the seeker. Even a

single effort to still at least a single thought even for a trice goes

a long way to reach the state of quiescence. Effort is required

and it is possible in the waking state only. There is the effort

here; there is awareness also; the thoughts are stilled; so there is

the peace of sleep gained. That is the state of the jnani. It is

neither sleep nor waking but intermediate between the two.

There is the awareness of the waking state and the stillness of

sleep. It is called jagratsushupti. Call it wakeful sleep or sleeping

wakefulness or sleepless sleep or wakeless waking...it is not the

same as sleep or waking separately. It is the state of perfect

awareness and of perfect stillness combined.” (Talks, 609)

 

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HUNTING THE ‘I’

 

according to Sri Ramana Maharshi

LUCY CORNELSSEN