From a satsang with SWAHA Pt. Dr. Umesh Persad
Once, a disciple asked his guru, “What can I do to attain that Supreme Lord?”
The Guru answered his disciple’s question by asking another question: “What can you do to make the sun rise?”
The disciple thought for a moment, and then he replied to the guru, “Well, nothing at all.
If not, then why are you giving us all these methods of devotion?”
The guru replied, “To make sure that you are awake when the sun rises.”
In this scenario, the disciple wants to know what we can do to attain that Supreme state. However, the question itself is incorrect, because that state cannot be attained. It is a state that we are already in, the state of Supreme Awareness. That Supreme Awareness is the basis of all things; it is always existing and shining. It is the basis of everything.
Do we do anything to make the sun rise? And If there is nothing we can actively do to achieve that state, then why do we have all the various spiritual practices? There are many people who give advice on spiritual practices. However, most people who are doing so are also seekers.
This guru, however, was a knower. So he advised that we cannot do anything to “achieve” that state. In other words, all of these spiritual practices are simply aimed at making us aware.
It is not about finding something new, fresh, or even a miracle. It is just about seeing the Truth, as it really is. Many people get frustrated trying to achieve a goal and having to wait for something to happen. However, those who know, laugh, because they know that it is not a matter of attainment. It is a matter of knowing the truth about who we are; the truth about what God really is. It means moving beyond all the mental illusions, and settling in that awareness and bliss of the Self, which we assume to be God.
The Truth as God, will always be here, beyond space and time. It is the essence of our true nature. However, we cannot only discover it by removing all the impurities of the mind. The mental state must be very clear and settled and then it will become self evident. Therefore, some effort is required. However, paradoxically, it is an effort of no effort.
Sometimes, it may seem as though the sages speak in contradictions. However, we often have two different lives: one is the life of the world and the mind living in it and the second is the true life – the observer of all creation, the true self. It is the part of you that does not die and that is always aware and awake.
All of these spiritual practices are good. However, we must understand why we are practising them. We have to make sure that we are awake and aware so that we can see that shining sun of the Self, as it were, your very self and your true nature.
Secondly, in terms of how we can be aware, there are many practices we can follow. Either we can make ourselves into nothing, zero, by completely destroying the ego, or, we may follow the path of gyaan (wisdom), where we realise that we are not just this body. Then we experience that we are everything. The endpoint of both methods remains the same. Either way, they prepare us for that moment when we realise the True Self.
