Absorbed in the Self

Those who, without wavering, recognize the One Witness of blazing lustre - turiyatita, which is perfected in the meaning of those three most excellent words: 'that thou art' - will unravel the knot of 'differences' and overcoming every obstacle, will be themselves absorbed in the SELF.

This is the delight of knowledge spoken of by the Vedas. Those who worship the feet of Narayana, who has described it, are without blemish; those who, through the teacher of this pupil, approach the stage in which doubt it finished and steadily go forward to Perfection, will obtain spotless Emancipation.

The author has, through the two parts of this work, kindled the sublime light of the spirit, so that the darkness of eternal maya may perish and, clearing all doubts rising from mental knowledge, which is affected by differences, has subjected the disciple to himself.

Praise, praise to the author of my salvation! He placed on his head the foot of Narayana, the Infinite Lord, who had made him his slave, and who, by means of the process of negation had destroyed what through imposition had arisen as a mere fictitious appearance, and put me in such a condition that I, with eyes of grace, can remain for ever the Spectator.

Just as the refreshing, cool water from the holy feet of one's wise Master sprinkled on one's head confers all the merits obtained from all the holy places of pilgrimage, so also the learners of this unique work acquire the merits of all the holy books and live as safes in the world.

...........................

Hari Om Tat Sat.

Vidyananda

Disciple: 

I had in my countless past incarnations mistaken the body for the self. High or low, seeing all as a mirage, I have by the grace of my Master realized the Self as 'I' and have been liberated. 

What meritorious work have I done? I cannot describe my good fortune. I am blessed by the grace of my Master, Narayana, of Nannilam! In my ecstasy I throw my cloth in the air, and dance for joy!

How noble have my parents been that they named me Tandava (dancer), as if they even then foresaw that I would be overpowered by the joy of having realized the Self and therefore dance in ecstasy!

Before who shall I pour forth this ecstatic Bliss of mine! It rises from within, surges up, fills the whole universe and floods unbounded! 

I bow to the lotus feet of the Almighty who was so gracious to bring me into contact with a Master who could teach me the Truth according to the holy texts!

Such is vidyananda. Those who study this work with devotion will realize the high state of repose and be liberated here and now. In order that all may clearly understand vidyananda, the true spirit of the Holy books, in Nannilam, Master Narayana appeared in my samadhi and commanded me to make this Kaivalya Navaneeta, perfect in every detail and free from defect.

All Unreal Like Dream

Disciple:

How should I remain so that I may experience what you have described as Bliss?

Master:

If you get rid of that mode of mind which gives rise to the states of waking, dream and sleep, you will remain as your true being and also experience Bliss. If you ask how to control the activities of the mind, rising up from its latencies: rule over the intellect and senses as your slaves. They will become extinct. Also by gentle control of the breath which blows like a bellows, the activities of the mind cease. If you are not inclined to practice this yoga, they will cease if you root out the massive ignorance of the causal body. Then too the mind stops its activities.

Disciple:

By what means can I root out ignorance, the causal body?

Master:

The shrutis can never mislead one. How can there be ignorance if you firmly fix their teaching in your mind: I am the all-perfect being in whom the worlds appear?

Disciple:

How can I remain so when I engage in worldly transactions, with the mind wandering?

Master:

There is nothing apart from Me. Whatever is seen, is of Me. I am the "I" who is consciousness, which sees all this as fictitious as my dream. If you always remain aware that 'I' am perfect consciousness, what does it matter how much you think, or what you do? All this is unreal like dream visions after waking. I am all-Bliss!

"I" - One Perfect Being

Master:

The paramahamsa order which is so efficient, is again of two grades.

A paramahamsa may be one who desires to know the Truth or is a realized being. The former is an intelligent practiser in the first three planes. The latter is a remarkable and pure sage who is liberated here and now.

The former class of paramahamsa is of two kinds. Hear me speak of them also.

Of these, one will give up the ties of home (according to ritual), formally enter the order of sannyas and gain supreme knowledge. The other kind remaining as brahmins, kshatriyas, vaishyas and sudras gains supreme knowledge.

Knowing it from the shastras and in actual practice, why do you still get confused? You must clear yourself by the authority of the srutis, your own reasoning and immediate experience.

If birth be a fact, then death is inevitable. But I am Brahman who is never born. If I be that which is born, this "I" cannot surely be Brahman. Therefore I am that "I" which is birthless and deathless as brahman.

Q: If I am brahman, how does it happen that I do not know this "I"?

A: Who says "I" now?

Q: The intellect.

A: The intellect gets lost in a swoon. That which remains is never lost, as perfect Consciousness is "I".

Q: This state of perfection is not clear to me. How can I experience it?

A: There is the experience of happiness in deep sleep and it is That. No happiness can be experienced anywhere when a want is felt. Therefore the Self must be this perfection. This is the source of all.

The cosmos originated in the imagination of the mind. Reason shows that these worlds have their being in that Consciousness. If the enquiry is pursued into the self as transcending all this and extending limitless, "I" remains as the one perfect Being.

Three Kinds of Detachment

Disciple:

O Lord who has taken me like rice out of paddy that is liable to sprout again! you have just said that the planes of knowledge lead even contemptible mlecchas to final liberation. But some say that liberation cannot be gained unless the person renounces all domestic ties and retires as a sannyasin. Please clear my confusion on this point.

Master:

Son worthy of respect by the righteous! your doubt is right; hear me clear it. The renunciation which snaps domestic ties is of four kinds. They are 1. kuteechaka 2. bahoodaka 3. hamsa and 4. paramahamsa, all of which are a panacea to the miseries of the world. But detachment and not the habiliments (ochre robes) is the sole requisite for such renunciation.

Detachment is again of three degrees according as it is dull, intense and very intense. That which is caused by a shock, is impulsive  and dull. Discarding home and wealth for good is the intense form. Disgust for brahmaloka as being illusory is the very intense.

Dull detachment does not qualify one for sannyas. Intense detachment makes the person eligible for the first two orders of sannyasa. If strong and fit he must move about as a bahoodaka; otherwise he must stay (at one place) as a kuteechaka.

When detachment is very intense, he can take to the hamsa or paramahamsa order. They say that the hamsa cannot gain final liberation unless through satyaloka, whereas the paramahamsa can gain it here and now. 

Seven Planes to Liberation

Continued from here

The Master said:

Those who yet remain in the first three planes are practisers and not emancipated.

Brahmavids are those who have gone into the fourth plane; they are pure and liberated.

Those in the next three planes are respectively vara, varya and varishta, i.e., the eminent, the more eminent and the most eminent among the knowers of Brahman. I shall still further tell you the excellence of the planes of the enlightened. 

Those who have remained in the first three planes and died before they reached the fourth plane, go to the happy regions; then they reincarnated and gradually fain liberation. surely they do not go to the unedifying lower planes.

O son! the first plane itself is difficult to gain. This gained, liberation is as good as gained.

If they gain the first or second planes of enlightenment in this world, even mlecchas are as good as emancipated. By the holy feet of my master, this is true! Cursed be they that deny it! Doubt not the Vedas, common to all. Strictly following the indicated way, clearly realize 'I am Brahman'!

Seven Stages to Liberation

The Master said:

I shall now tell you the seven stages of knowledge which bestow Liberation.

The elders have analyzed them as:

1. Subheccha: desire for Truth
2. Vicharana: investigation into the Truth
3. Tanumanasi: pure attenuated mind
4. Sattvapati: Realization of the Truth
5. Asamsakti: a detached outlook on the universe and its contents
6. Padarthabhavani: untainted awareness of Self
7. Turiya: the highest and indescribable state

1. To wean from unedifying associations and desire, to knowledge of the Supreme, is the first plane called subeccha.
2. To associate with enlightened sages, learn from them and reflect on the Truth, is called investigation.
3. To be free from desires by meditating on the Truth with faith, is the attenuation of the mind.
4. The shining forth of the highest knowledge in the mind, owing to the development of the foregoing conditions is Realization.
5. To be free from illusion by firm realization of Truth, is the detached outlook on the universe.
6. The bliss of the non-dual Self, devoid of triads, is untainted awareness of Self.
7. Sublime Silence of the very nature of Self, is Turiya. Hear why this seventh plane was said to be turiyatita (beyond the turiya).

The first three planes are said to be jagrat (i.e., waking state) because the world is perceived (in them as ever before). 

The fourth plane corresponds to dream (because the world is recognized to be dreamlike).

Even the dim perception of the world gradually vanishes and therefore the fifth plane is called the sleep state.

Transcendental Bliss prevails in the sixth which is therefore called turiya (i.e., the fourth state relatively to the foregoing waking, dream and sleep states).

The plane beyond all imagination is the seventh one which the Vedas indicate as sublime Silence (i.e., turiyatita).

Some sages consider the name turiya to be in conflict with the foregoing explanation of turiyatita which, according to them, will be the glorious Liberation after disembodiment. In such a scheme, the sixth plane is the state of very deep slumber as compared with the dreamless sleep of the fifth plane.

Seven States of Ignorance

Master:

After analysis, the elders say that there are seven stages of ignorance and seven degrees of knowledge. Of them all, first hear me mention the seven states of ignorance. The elders have named them thus:

1. Bija-jagrat: the germinal state of waking

2. Jagrat; the waking state

3. Maha jagrat: the waking state firmly established

4. Jagrat svapna: the state of daydreaming

5. Svapna: the dream state

6. Svapna-jagrat: cogitation of the dream after waking up from it

7. Sushupti: the dreamless sleep

The germinal waking state is the uncompounded consciousness which rises up fresh from the unitary state of being.

The waking state contains the sprout of the ego which was previously absent from the germinal state.

The sprout of the 'I' and 'mine' which rises up with every birth, is the firm waking state.

The fussy ego conjuring up visions is the dreaming-wakeful state.

To have uncontrolled visions while sleeping after a full meal, is the state of dream.

To be thinking of the dreams after waking up from them, is the waking-dream.

The dense darkness of ignorance is the state of deep slumber.

These are the seven states of ignorance.

Abide As The Self

Sri Tandavaraya Swami

Disciple: O Lord! like millions of suns rising simultaneously, you have come forth as my Master to dispel the darkness of my ignorance! Hear me again.

In accordance with the statement of the srutis, I have now understood beyond doubt that my self is the indivisible Reality. If you will further establish it by arguments, the truth will be fixed in my mind like an iron spike driven into a living tree.

Master: Being must itself be consciousness. Should the consciousness be different from being, it must be non-existent. How then can the being be revealed?

Again, consciousness must itself be the being. If different from consciousness, it must be insentient. The insentient cannot exist by itself. Thus being and consciousness, being identical, it is also bliss. This is the most agreeable argument (lit., 'seminal line of reasoning'). Otherwise bliss will be non-existent and insentient and there can be no experience of bliss (which is absurd).

How is sat which exists at all times revealed? By itself or by another?

A: By another.

Q: Is that other non-existent or existent?

A: Non-existent.

Q: Fool! Can the son of a barren woman effect anything?

A: Then let it be something existing but different from the original sat.

Q: How is its existence revealed? You must say; 'by another'. Will there be an end to this chain of existent things and their cognisors? Your answer is therefore untenable, so get rid of this false reasoning.

Listen to experience agreeable to scripture and reason. Since the bliss of profound sleep persists as memory, this bliss itself must be knowledge. There was nothing besides it. Existing in the dissolution and deep sleep, you witness the darkness of ignorance. Now entering the Heart abide as the perfect Self!

One Undivided Whole

Disciple:

If each of the terms sat, chit and ananda of which you have spoken, has characteristics of its own, how can the mind which is already unsteady be fixed (on unity)? I do not see that they are different words with the same meaning. I pray you kindly show me how it is all an indivisible, homogeneous whole like honey which is uniform though gathered from different flowers by the bees.

Master: 

Is water tripartite because of its coldness, fluidity and whiteness? Or is fire tripartite because of its light, heat and redness?

The Vedas have analyzed and dismissed the cosmos, beginning with the ether, as unsubstantial, insentient and misery-laden. In contradistinction to this and for easy understanding they have described Brahman as sat-chit-ananda which is One only. The Vedas describe Brahman in affirmative terms as follows: the Eternal, Whole, Unique, the Highest Truth, the Supreme, the Repository or the Source, Peace, Ever-True, Absolute (continuum of the Source, dream and sleep states, and therefore) the Fourth Continuous or Equal in all, the Sight, the Witness of all, Knowledge, Pure, Everlasting, Indweller, the Reality, Ether, Light, the Self, Liberation, the Lord, Subtle and so on;

In negative terms as - the Unmoving, Untainted, Immortal, Immeasurable, Unsullied, beyond speech, not insentient, the Diseaseless, Uncontaminated, Incomparable, Uninterrupted, Unattainable (by the mind or senses), Undivided, Unborn, Infinite, Indestructible, (That which is) without qualities, Undivided, without limbs or parts, Beginningless, Bodiless, Changeless, Non-dual and so on.

When all these qualities, affirmative or otherwise, are considered together in the right way, they point to One only and there can be no other. Many may be the worlds to signify the same. Thus Brahman, signified by sat, chit and ananda is One only. Realize this unity and remain as one Undivided Whole.

Do not say: 'To describe Brahman by qualities is like speaking of a barren mother'. Can there be anyone so talented as to understand the nature of brahman without being told? What the Vedas have revealed out of grace for gaining knowledge of brahman and liberation in life, are not qualities of brahman but brahman itself.

Everything Like Foam In The Waters of Bliss

Master: 

Of the happiness enjoyed by the sole sovereign of the world, the earthly gandharvas and celestial gandharvas, the brilliant piris, the gods existing from creation, the later gods and celestial chiefs, Indra, Brhaspati, Prajapati or Hiranyagarbha, each is a hundred times as great as the preceding one. Yet all are fragmentary and like froth and foam in the waters of the deluge of brahmananda.

Whosoever remains in the turiyatita state, the seventh (and the highest) plane, his experience of Consciousness-Bliss is the same as that of Narada, Suka, Shiva, Vishnu, brahma and such others, free from duality or sleep. May the dust of his holy feet settle on my (humble) head!

So far I have now told you of five kinds of ananda; I shall later describe the bliss of knowledge; I have already described the bliss of the Self as the dearest of all and the bliss of the non-dualist Self while explaining maya and sat-chit-ananda. O Son free from the pairs of opposites! Tell me, have you any more doubts?

State Without Thoughts: Nijananda

Disciple: O Master, adored even by the gods! you are all-knowing and can kindly clear this doubt of mine: in this world of cause and effect, the experience of one cannot be felt by another. In deep sleep, the intellectual sheath has subsided and the blissful sheath has the experience of happiness. Is it right that this experience should be remembered by the intellectual sheath which expresses it?

Master: Know that these two (stand to each other in the relationship of) melted ghee and solidified ghee. They differ in their limiting thoughts, but not in their (intrinsic) knowledge. The intellectual sheath limited by the mind and active in the waking state, and the blissful one made of the bliss of pure Consciousness which appears when the painful mind subsides in deep sleep, are not different from each other, just like rain water and the water stored in a reservoir, or like sugar and syrup.

Disciple: In that case, why should anyone lose hold of that non dual bliss of brahman and come out of it?

Master: He is drawn out by the force of his past karma. The man who has just wakened from deep sleep does not immediately lose the happiness of sleep for he does not bestir himself at once nor forget the happiness. This short interval of peace which is neither sleep nor waking, is the bliss of remembrance. 

At the instant 'I am the body' idea starts, he loses himself in the troubles of the world and forgets the bliss. His past karma brings on pain or pleasure. Peace results in equipoise. Everyone has experienced the state void of thoughts and the pleasure consequent upon it. This is nijananda.

Can this be the bliss of samadhi? (No). The external moisture is not the water contained within the pot. This happiness (of indifference) is only the shadow of the bliss of yogic samadhi cast upon the rising ego. When the ego subsides and samadhi results there is the state of Repose in which the mind is not aware of the environment nor asleep, and the body stays stiff like a post.

Brahmananda

Sri Tandavaraya Swami

Disciple: 

Worshipful Master! How many kinds of ananda (bliss) are there?

Master: 

There are three:

1. Brahmananda (which shines as pure Consciousness, eg, in sleep);

2. Vasanananda (which is present in reminiscence); and

3. Vishayananda (which is the joy of gaining the desired object).

However others say that there are eight kinds of ananda. The above three cover the other five (of the eight). I shall nevertheless tell you all these eight. Hear me.

1. Vishaya sukha - the pleasure of sensual enjoyment;

2. Brahma sukha - the bliss of dreamless sleep;

3. Vasana sukha - the remembrance of the above for a few minutes immediately after waking;

4. Atma sukha - the happiness which ensues on determining that the Self is the dearest of all dear things;

5. Mukhya sukha - the bliss of samadhi when the veil of ignorance is completely lifted;

6. Nija sukha - the contentment which results from indifference;

7. Advitiya sukha - the happiness of holding on to the Self to the exclusion of duality;

8. Vidya sukha - the happiness that results from the enquiry into the Self in accordance with the scriptural texts.

My son! hear me describe their distinguishing characteristics. A man who is always exerting himself in the waking state, seeks rest on the bed, out of sheer exhaustion. Then his mind is well turned inwards and in that state it reflects the image of the bliss of Consciousness which shines by Itself. The pleasure which he then experiences, represents objective pleasure.

The person who, feeling objective pleasure poor because they involve the painful triads, keeps the mind in repose and falls into sleep, like an eagle dropping into its nest, becomes one with the limitless transcendent Being and remains as the blissful Self. This supreme state of Bliss is unrivalled brahmananda.

That the bliss of deep sleep is brahmananda, is the statement of the scriptures. That some persons take elaborate care to provide themselves with downy beds to sleep on, is the fact which supports it. That in that state, all sense of right and wrong, of man or woman, of in or out, is totally lost as at the time of the embrace of the beloved, is the experience which confirms it. So it is brahmananda, sure and certain.

What is sat-chit-ananda?

Disciple: 

Lord, who has appeared as my Master in the world! I do not clearly understand the character of Being-Consciousness-Bliss (sat-chit-ananda). What is this sat? What is chit? And what is ananda?

Master: 

sat is that which does not perish at anytime - past, present or future.

chit (consciousness) is that which cognizes the different objects.

ananda (bliss) is the joy arising out of the experience of bliss during the enjoyment of an object of desire.

Disciple: 

O Master who like an elephant in rut, attacks and demolishes the forts of the sheaths, although the mahavakyas in the four Vedas declare 'Thou art sat-chit-ananda' to the indweller in the mortal body, and Masters say 'Thou art brahman', yet how can one experience 'I am sat-chit-ananda'?

Master: 

When it is said that rebirths are the inevitable results of past actions, does it not follow that the person was existent in the past? Again should heaven and hell be the rewards of present actions, does it not follow that he will the rewards of present actions, does it not follow that he will continue to exist in the future? A subtle body (suited to heaven or hell), a celestial body, or a human body which are all the results of illusion, often change and pass away. Always surviving the false body, it is but right to say that he is sat. In the darkness covering deep sleep and night, when there is no sun or lamp, he is unmistakably aware of darkness and objects, so he is chit. He is also ananda because his love never fades for the incomparably beatific Self, for love manifests only for an object of pleasure.

Food, drink and so forth are dear to all alike because pleasure is derived from them. The Self is not likewise a means to beatitude. Should the Self described above be classed along with other means of pleasure, where is the pleasure apart or the enjoyer thereof? Can the Self be two?

Love for sensual pleasure is evident, but the love for the Self remains unrivalled. The love for sensual pleasure undergoes changes whereas the intense love for the Self remains unchanging. Sensual pleasures can be enjoyed or rejected, but who is there to accept or reject the Self? The Self can reject all other pleasures but not reject itself.

It is wrong to imagine that the Self kills itself and gets rid of itself by committing suicide in a burning passion. He who kills the body cannot be the body given up by him. The disgust is for the body and never for the Self. Wealth is much sought after, but a son is dearer than wealth; one's own body is dearer than a son; the senses are dearer than the body; the life-breath is dearer than the senses and the Self is very much dearer than life itself. This Self is the essence and the other three selves - the secondary (viz. the son), the illusory (the body) and the acting ones (the ego) - successively increase in importance.

At the time of one's death, the secondary self, namely the son, who succeeds tot he father's estate, assumes prominence. At the time of nourishment, the illusory self, namely the body, is prominent. When a happy future life is desired, the acting self, i.e., the ego, becomes prominent. But int he state of Liberation, the Self, to wit pure Consciousness is paramount.

Even a tiger becomes a favorite when it is obedient and a son is hated when he thwarts one. In this world, the things like straw which are neither loved nor hated, are treated with indifference. But under no circumstances does the love of the stainless Self diminish for anyone.

Therefore, my son, investigate your true nature which is unbroken Bliss only and realize the Self.

Bliss Evident In Peaceful Mind

Disciple: 

O Master, I do not see the propriety of the statement that all beings are permeated by the single non-dual Self which is all-embracing as Being-Consciousness-Bliss. The existence of the jivas is clear because they all say 'I'; Consciousness also is clear because of knowledge which is obvious; why does not Bliss show forth in a similar way?

Master: 

Son, although there are shape, fragrance and softness together present in the same flower, each of them is cognized by a separate sense only. Otherwise they are not perceived; such is the law of nature. Similarly, though the beatific qualities, Being, Consciousness and Bliss together form the Self, yet the modes vary constantly and give rise to the differences which appear as the world.

The three qualities - sattva, rajas, tamas - give rise to the three modes - repose, agitation and ignorance respectively. Being Consciousness and Bliss which are themselves glorious, always remain a homogeneous whole, yet appear different.

Bare existence alone is noticed in plants, minerals and the earth, which look insentient and are ignorant. There can be no happiness in the state of disturbance caused by passions, such as lust, which act like poison. But Being and Consciousness are evident in it. Being, Consciousness and Bliss together become manifest in the state of Peace which is characterized by a stern detachment (from externalities). Therefore Bliss becomes clear in a peaceful mind rid of ignorance and agitation.

Bliss Clearly Perceived In a Peaceful Mind

Disciple: 

O Master! I do not see the propriety of the statement that all beings are permeated by the single non-dual Self which is all-embracing as Being-Consciousness-Bliss. The existence of the jivas is clear because they all say 'I'; Consciousness also is clear because of knowledge which is obvious; why does not Bliss show forth in a similar way?

Master: 

Although there are shape, fragrance and softness together present in the same flower, each of them is cognized by a separate sense only. Otherwise they are not perceived; such is the law of nature. Similarly, though the beatific qualities - Being, Consciousness and Bliss together form the Self, yet the modes vary constantly and give rise to the differences which appear as the world.

The three qualities - sattva, rajas and tamas - give rise to the three modes - repose, agitation and ignorance respectively. Being, Consciousness and Bliss which are themselves glorious, always remain a homogeneous whole, yet appear different.

Bare existence alone is noticed in plants, minerals and earth, which look insentient and are ignorant. There can be no happiness in the state of disturbance caused by passions, such as lust, which act like poison. But Being and Consciousness are evident in it. Being, Consciousness  and Bliss together become manifest in the state of Peace which is characterized by a stern detachment (from externalities). Therefore Bliss becomes clear in a peaceful mind rid of ignorance and agitation.

Turn Away

Disciple:

Though false, how can the persistent appearance of non-being - insentience - misery in the fullness of Being-Consciousness-Bliss be wiped away?

Master:

Though the reflection in the water appears head downwards and tremulous, yet when the figure on the ground is considered, which remains upright and steady, that worthless image is only unreal. Knowledge is the cause, and objects the effects. It is fruitless to discuss how the phantoms of names and forms came into being and how they will vanish. Worthy son! not caring how this long-drawn out dream of the world came into being or how it is withdrawn, only remain aware as the Consciousness-Self which is all embracing. To the degree that you turn away from attachments to the unreal, your inner vision of Reality develops. If, by a steady practice of this kind, the mind comes under control and becomes aware as Consciousness-Self, you can abide as the ocean of Bliss though living in the bitter body.

..............

Let the world bother about its reality or falsehood. Find out first about your own reality. Then all things will become clear.  - Sri Ramana Maharshi

Remain As Sacchidananda To Dispel Maya

Disciple:

Why should the power which is unreal, be said to exist?

Master:

Good natured son! Look how the grasses and their like which appear insentient, put forth blossoms and bear crops. But for the consciousness pervading them all, the mobile and immobile beings would lose their immemorial nature. See the wonder, how the embryos in eggs develop into birds of so many hues! But for the governance of an unseen force, all (the laws of nature) would be blotted out, like a kingdom without a king. Fire would turn into water; a bitter thing taste sweet; even the degraded recite the Vedas; the immovable mountain ranges float like clouds in the air; all the oceans become sandy wastes and there would be no fixity anywhere.

Disciple:

O Master who are the transcendent Reality! how can this power of consciousness (maya) which cannot be seen or known or expressed by anyone in words, and forms the root-cause of diverse names and forms, be rooted out? Otherwise how is brahman to be meditated upon as the non-dual Reality, to gain deliverance?

Master:

What becomes of the well-known qualities of air, water or fire when they are checked by amulets or incantations? If you stay as sat-chit-ananda, free from other thoughts, maya becomes extinct. No other method can be found in the whole range of Vedas. What remains unmanifest in clay, becomes manifest (as a pot). For the practical purposes of life, the word makes earth a pot and destroys it. To discard names and forms and recognize the clay, is true knowledge. In the same manner discard the fancied notions of plurality of beings and realize the Self as pure Consciousness.

Lack of Vichara Causes Illusion

Sri Tandavaraya Swami

Disciple: 

O Master! who are like a typhoon in dispersing the clouds of maya!

- Of what nature is maya?

- Who are in its grip?

- How did it come into being?

- Why did it arise?

- Duality is inevitable if maya is separate from brahman.

- If separate, brahman itself is false (like maya)

Master:

- Because its nature is not determinable, maya is said to be inexpressible.

- They are in its grip who think 'this is mine, I am the body, the world is real.'

- O Son, none can ascertain how this mysterious illusion came into being.

- As to why it arose, it is because of the person's want of vichara (discerning enquiry).

- A magician's unseen powers remain unknown until hordes of illusory beings make their appearance in the show. Similarly the countless powers of brahman remain unknown but they are inferred only after the manifestation of the elements. 

The magician who stands on terra firma and the hordes (conjured up by him) are visible to the onlookers. But his wonderful genius for magic remains mysterious. So also the handiwork of illusion and the wielder of the illusion (brahman) are visible, but not the power of illusion. There are many powers distinct from Almighty brahman and the world.

The power is not apart from the weilder. The wielder of magic is real, but the apparitions (of magic) are not. Wise son, you can from this illustration ascertain the true nature of the Reality which is the weilder of illusion and which at the same time remains whole and as the Self. Thus, get clear of your doubts.

Sacrilege?

Sri Tandavaraya Swami

Disciple:

My Lord! Is it not blasphemy to deny as unreal the lotus-seated Creator and the other gods, the great men of the world, holy waters like the Ganges, the places of pilgrimage, the holy occasions, the four vedas with their six auxiliaries, the mantras and austerities?

Master: 

If it be sacrilege to deny dream-visions as false, it would sacrilege too to deny the world which derives its existences from illusion. If, on the other hand, it is right to deny dream-visions, it is only right to deny the world also which is derived from illusion. 

If the puranas hold as men of merit the ignorant who regard the false as true, does any shastra attach censure to the jnani for calling the truth, truth? 

Maya, which appears as the elements and the modifications with different names and forms, is false. Only the Self which is all diffusive as sat-chit-ananda, is the Truth.