Symbols of the Self
Introduction
I
visited
In
In
To understand the
spiritual symbolism of
Though
too subtle for the man on the street to grasp, the Upanishadic teaching that we
enjoy limitless freedom is a powerful idea that will never die because it
fulfills the deepest need of human beings.
Even Vedanta, the teaching tradition that has preserved it all this time
was never intended for mass consumption.
It managed to survive through a special educational system dedicated
solely to the purpose of maintaining Vedic Dharma, the way of life that leads
to freedom. But as
The
Pauranas are called Dharma Shastras, scriptures on Dharma, the
The
genius of the Puranas lies in the way they convert mundane experience and
objects into symbols of the Self. From a
geographical and material point of view
Rivers
too have been converted to Self symbols because they give life, nourishing
everything with which they come in contact.
In fact the elements (air, fire, water, earth and space) are not only
the Self in material form but, for the purposes of worship and contemplation,
function as Self symbols, the meditation on which may open the door to the
shining world of Self knowledge. In
Animals, plants and
minerals represent spiritual truths. The elephant because of its keen
intelligence and long memory has come to represent Vedic wisdom. Gold, because of its great value and
non-tarnishing quality and silver for its reflective ability are well-known
Self symbols. Colors too have symbolic
meanings. White, for its similarity to
light, is an obvious Self symbol. And
black, because it is opposite white, usually symbolizes ignorance. But black often symbolizes the Self because,
as the Self encompasses everything within panoramic awareness, black includes
all the colors of the spectrum. Because
the relatively infinite sky is blue, blue has come to symbolize the limitless
Self. Red typically symbolizes passion,
in this case the Self as the passionate dancing energy, shakti, that creates
the universe.
According
to ancient Tamil sources Sri Kalahasti has been known as the ‘Kailas of the
South’ for slightly more than two thousand years and the small river on whose
banks it sits, the ‘
Even the cardinal
directions have assumed symbolic significance in Pauranic culture. Obviously
context should be taken into account when divining the meaning of a symbol, but
north, for example, is said to be the abode of the Self because from the
immortal ‘northern’ position the Self looks out on the ‘southern’ world of time
and death. The idiom to “head south’
means to go downhill, to decay. The God
Dakshinamurthy whose name means ‘the one facing south’ and whose idol (murthy)
is installed in the
The Vedas posit four ends for which human
beings strive in their search for happiness: pleasure (
The most revered and universal symbol
of the Self is the human form, ‘man cast in the image of God’ and its spiritual
significance is difficult to overestimate.
Rather than conceive of us as tainted sinful human creatures, the
Upanishad tells us that we are divine.
It says, “That which you worship there is this that you see here.” The ineffable formless God/Self perceived by
mystics is this whole world and everything in it. While Hindu deities often sport dozens of
arms and animal heads their essential forms are recognizably human. Probably no other idea accounts for the
astonishing fact that one billion people stuffed into a land mass one third the
size of the
SriKalahasti
got its name because in days of yore a spider (sri), serpent (kala) and
elephant (hasti) elephant worshipped Shiva with great devotion. A spider lived in the inner sanctum and
worshipped the Lord by weaving elaborate temples and images of Shiva. One day a breeze came up and caused the altar
fire to destroy the spider’s offerings.
It became angry and was about to gulp down the flame, (realize the Self)
endangering its (ego’s) life.
Appreciative of its devotion, Shiva appeared and granted the spider a
boon. The spider requested moksha,
release from the cycle of births and deaths.
Accordingly it became one with Shiva, the Self.
A
cobra worshipped Lord Shiva by offering rare gems, pearls and rubies that it
brought from Nagaland, a mythical place where Nagas (serpents) dwell. Serpents are one of
The plethora of
symbols that enhance temple culture not only point to the Self, they reveal the
deep psychology of Vedic culture.
According to the Vedas human beings suffer, not because they are
sinners, but because they have unwittingly separated themselves from their
spiritual source, the Self. Furthermore,
they state that everyone, consciously or unconsciously, strives to rediscover
this source of wholeness and peace.
Although there are many variations, one archetype illustrating this
truth is divorce and remarriage. In the
Ramayana, perhaps the most popular Purana, Lord Rama’s (the Self) wife Sita
(his loving peaceful mind) is deluded by a golden deer (the sense objects) and
therefore abducted by a ravenous demon (the ego) who carries her off to a
foreign country (a selfish materialistic ‘state’ of mind). Rama sets off on a long and arduous journey
(the spiritual path) to regain her. Only
with the help of an intelligent monkey (devotion) can he locate her. He kills the demon with a whirling discus of
light (the teaching “Tat Tvam Asi” which indicates the identity of the
individual self and the Self) and reclaims his wife (attains enlightenment).
The
Superstars
Two primary Self symbols
vie for the hearts of Indian devotees, Shiva and Vishnu. Shiva, whose name means “that which is good
at all places and all times,” is personification of the Self, luminous Consciousness,
the essence of everyone and everything.
Vishnu, ‘the one who pervades every atom of the universe’ is another
personification of the formless Spirit.
As a deity Vishnu lives in Vaikuntha, a heavenly abode. Scores of minor local and regional deities in
addition to these superstars also function symbols of the Self.
Vishnu is a peaceful,
compassionate, intelligent deity because the Self is peace, intelligence and
non-dual wisdom. Non-dual wisdom is a
synonym for compassion because a person who has it sees everything as his or
her own self and will only express good will to itself in the form of apparent
others. Vishnu is a protector and savior
of human beings and comes to their aid whenever the need arises. By hearing his story, visiting his temple at
Tirupathi and having his darshan it is said that the devotee attains liberation
and avoids rebirth. Since life in this
changing world is fraught with insecurity, liberation is considered the highest
goal of life.
When there is a decline
in righteousness in the world and living a holy life becomes difficult, Vishnu,
the all-pervading Self, takes form and appears on earth to re-establish Dharma.
The story of his incarnation begins when Narada, a celestial devotee of Vishnu
and son of the Creator, Brahma, goes to his father and informs him that the
earth is suffering a period of materialism and lawlessness.
Narada represents the
enlightened mind, one that rests permanently in the Self. His father said, “You will always be going
around the universe. There is nothing
unknown to you. Merely by thinking you
can create a problem and solve it too. I
don’t need to teach you anything or do anything for you. Do what is necessary to rectify the
situation. I wish you all success.”
So Narada took leave of
his father and went to earth chanting the name of Vishnu. When he reached the
The ritual lasted many
days and during a break Narada, who had a reputation for making trouble, asked
the sages which of the Trimurtis[2]
(the three main Gods: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva) would receive the Yagna effect.[3] His provocative question set them to
thinking. Each felt that the good karma
of the Yagna should go to his personal deity and eventually the Yagna turned
into a heated debate.
When he saw that he had
provoked them enough Narada suggested that Brighu, a great sage who had
acquired exceptional powers from long and arduous penance, test the three gods
to determine who was worthy of the Yagna benefits. Not only was Brighu the most powerful sage,
he possessed a gargantuan spiritual ego and Narada had in mind to give him an
assignment that would cut him down to size.
Flattered, Brighu left
the Yagna and went to Satya Loka, the realm of Truth, where Brahma and his
consort, Saraswati, the Divine Mother, were seated near their throne conversing
with some celestial denizens. Brighu strode
haughtily into the room and sat on Brahma’s throne without acknowledging the
Creator’s presence. Brahma felt inclined
to lecture Brighu and said, “A person who acquires such great power through
yoga should also be humble and well-mannered.
But you think you are superior to everyone, including me, the
Creator. Who do you think you are? ”
Brighu got off the
throne and thought, “Owing to an excess of Rajoguna[4]
Brahma is exceptionally proud and does not deserve the Yagna effect.” Before he strode off in a huff he said to
Brahma. “You, not me, are lacking in
manners. You made no attempt to
understand why I had come but continued your conversation with these exalted
celestials when I arrived. Not only
that, you had the temerity to rebuke me.
Therefore I curse you. You will
not have any temples on earth and will not be worshipped.” (Because of this story there is only one
temple dedicated to Brahma in all of
Next Brighu approached
Brighu
was unbowed and said, “You may be a big god but you are the one lacking in
manners. You ignored me and continued to
make love with your wife without even inquiring why I had come. Now you point your Trishool at me and insult
me. Had you shown some culture, you
might have been the recipient of the Yagna effect, but now you will receive my
curse. You will be worshipped on earth
only in the form of a Linga and not in your real shape.”[6]
When
Brighu arrived at Vaikunta he saw Vishnu reclining on the infinite coils of the
cosmic serpent Sesha who was floating on an endless ocean of milk. Vishnu was surrounded by worshipful gods and
goddesses and his wife Laxmi, the goddess of wealth, was hidden in his heart. Vishnu, who is omniscient, saw Brighu coming
and divined his purpose but pretended to be unaware of the sage. Remembering his treatment at the hands of
Brahma and Shiva Brighu became furious, rushed up to Vishnu and kicked him
violently in the chest, the abode of Laxmi.
Vishnu, who is never
perturbed, took the insult without batting an eye. In fact he got up from his royal seat, took
Brighu by the hand, led him to Sesha’s coils, sat him down and proceeded to
massage his right foot which had sustained a terrible injury since it struck a
huge jewel that he wore on his chest. As
he was massaging the foot he surreptitiously opened Brighu’s third eye which
lay in his foot and said, “Oh, great and learned man, forgive my
negligence. I didn’t see you. This injury you received is due to me. But we need not worry as it is part of the
divine plan and we are only instruments.”
This incident is rife
with many layers of symbolism. The Ocean
of milk symbolizes the Divine Mind; the cosmic snake with infinite coils the
infinite spiritual potential of the cosmos.
Vishnu represents the Self. In
this story he stands for sattva, the mind that is calm and peaceful, the mind
that knows the truth, one that does not react to events. The wound Brighu receives as karmic
retribution for his arrogant behavior softens him up so he can hear the
truth. The opening of his ‘third eye’
means that Vishnu gave Brighu Self knowledge.
Self knowledge is the only cure for egoism. The ‘right’ foot symbolizes the humility that
comes from living a righteous life.
Brighu was ready for Self knowledge owing to his long and arduous
spiritual work. The only obstacle to his
enlightenment was his ego, which Vishnu deflated by his compassionate
non-attachment. When the mind is pure,
sattvic, it is dispassionate, non-reactive.
Brighu, by his aggression, expected Vishnu to react, but when he did
not, Brighu became aware of his own anger and was forced to let it go, setting
himself up for the opening of his third eye which was accomplished by the
Upanishadic teaching, “Tat tvam asi” a Sanskrit
statement indicating one’s
identity with the Self.
Brighu
realized that Vishnu, an embodiment of Sattvaguna,[7]
was the only god qualified to receive the blessings of the sacrifice, so he
returned to the
He
arrived to find his wife Laxmi in a terrible state. She had taken Brighu’s kick as an insult and
was furious that her husband had treated the proud sage with such
kindness. She said, “You are the head of
the whole cosmos, you command the respect of millions of gods and billions of
creatures, yet you loved and served that vain Marharshi who dared to kick you
in the chest where I live.[8] I cannot tolerate your behavior.”
“Calm
down, my dear,” said Vishnu. “Don’t you
realize that Brighu is my devotee and it is my duty to save devotees? Will parents get angry and punish their
children when they are kicked?[9] He came here with a purpose, not to dishonor
me. His actions were part of the divine
plan. Why worry about it?”
“Since
you are the intelligence that runs the entire cosmos, you are exceptionally
clever at justifying your actions, but I will not swallow your lame arguments. I am leaving you once and for all. And I will not leave that arrogant Brahmin
unpunished!”
So
she cursed that the entire Brahmin community would be deprived of wealth and
would only subsist by selling their knowledge.[10] She then prostrated to her husband and went
to a lonely place on earth where she sat in meditation.
When
Laxmi left Heaven lost its festive appearance.
Because she was the goddess of wealth all the money went with her and
the citizens began to suffer poverty.
They did not enjoy their new status so they went to Vishnu and requested
him to persuade his wife to return.
Feeling their distress he went to earth in search of his beloved. Tired and exhausted after searching many days
he eventually arrived at the Tirupathi hills and took shelter in an ant hill
under a tamarind tree where he sat in meditation praying for the return of his
wife.[11]
When
Narada heard that Laxmi had left Vaikunta he went to Brahma, his father, and
explained that Vishnu was living in an anthill on earth, wasting away to a
shadow of his former self, pining away for his wife. Brahma told Narada to visit Laxmi and he
himself went to
When
Narada told Laxmi, who was meditating on earth like an ordinary woman, about
her husband’s condition she burst into tears.
To console her Narada said, “When you were with him all the time he
seemed quite indifferent. Now that you have
left him he thinks of you night and day. This is how fate works. You must work out a way to feed him.”[13]
She was very distressed
and prayed to Brahma and Shiva who appeared in front of her as a cow and calf.[14] She immediately took the form of a cowherd
woman and led the cow and calf, which were exceptionally beautiful, to the
palace of the king and queen. They were
attracted by the animals and purchased them to feed their child, believing that
such a cow would give exceptional milk.
They
turned the care of the animals over to a cowherd boy who took them out to graze
during the day. However, when he milked
the cow in the evening he discovered that her udders were completely empty. The King and Queen grew suspicious, thinking
the cowherd was selling the milk and threatened him with dire consequences if
the cow did not deliver.
The
cowherd watched the cow carefully the next day and noticed that it stealthily
separated itself from the herd. He
followed it to the anthill where he witnessed it emptying its udders through
one of the holes.[15] He became so angry that he raised an axe to
kill the cow but Vishnu, seeing that the cow was in danger, leapt out of the
anthill just in time to receive the blow on his divine head. He fell down, blood gushing from his
wound. Seeing the Lord lying in a pool
of blood caused the cowherd to faint.
The blood-spattered cow ran to the palace and began lowing with such
force that the king and his army came out to see what was causing the
commotion. The cow made gestures that
caused the king to think that it wanted to show him something and he followed
it with his army to the anthill when he saw the cowherd lying unconscious and
the Lord in a pool of blood. “Who are
you,” said the king, understanding that this injured man was no ordinary
mortal.[16]
“You
want to know who I am?” said the Lord coming out his coma. Saying “See me now!” he showed the king his
infinite cosmic form. Then he said to
the king, “Because you are responsible for your subjects I hold you responsible
for this wound.[17] I curse you to become a hungry ghost.”
The king was distressed
and begged the Lord to withdraw the curse.
“I cannot withdraw the curse,”
the Lord said, but after this birth you will be reborn and have a daughter
named Padmavati whom you will present, along with a ruby-studded crown, to me
in marriage. Then you will attain
liberation.”[18]
The Lord then began to
search the woods for a medicine that would heal his wound and came to the
Vishnu was eventually taken in by a motherly
forest dwelling devotee, Vakula Devi, from his previous incarnation who treated
his wound and tended to his needs. He
soon recovered and came to enjoy his life in the Tirupathi forest. One day, dressed as a hunter, took his bow
and arrow and went into the forest. When
he raised his bow and shot an arrow it made a thundering noise and all the wild
animals scattered in fear. As they ran
he aimed his sharp arrows and killed many.
He heard a large haughty elephant trumpeting loudly. He chased the beast but was unable to keep up
with it. Just when it seemed as if the
elephant would escape he prayed to Brahma and a white horse appeared. He mounted the horse and gave chase. After some time the elephant stopped, saluted
Vishnu and disappeared. This made the
Lord happy and he decided to stop hunting dumb animals. He entered a lovely garden nearby where he
found a beautiful lake with clear water from which he drank. After drinking he fell into a wonderful
sleep.
In the vignette above
hunting wild beasts with a bow and arrow symbolizes meditation for the purpose
of purification of the mind. The wild
beasts represent the wild animal impulses that disturb the mind. The bow represents the mind at meditation and
the sharp arrows the mantras or teachings that the meditator uses to neutralize
the thoughts and feelings that disturb the mind. Here the forest represents an uncontrolled
mind. The haughty elephant is the ego
which can not be killed or tamed without the help of the Brahma, the Self. Brahma means limitless. The knowledge that one is limitless causes
the ego to surrender. Once the ego has
acknowledged the Self a state of peace ensues.
Gardens, places of beauty and rest, are Self symbols. Drinking clear water symbolizes
enlightenment, receiving the knowledge of one’s limitless nature and the
wonderful sleep is known as Yoga Nidra, the Sleep of Yoga. Sleep is a reasonable Self symbol because one
experiences limitlessness, albeit without consciousness. Yoga means to join or yoke and represents a
pure mind that has joined itself through understanding with the Self. Such a mind ‘sleeps’ i.e. rests.
As he rested in the
garden a melodious song attracted his attention and when he opened his eyes he
saw Padmavati approaching. She was so
beautiful he fell in love immediately.
He got up and politely asked her name and her parentage. Since he was only a rustic and she a great
princess she did not speak to him directly but directed her handmaidens to
inquire about him. He said he was from
Tirupathi and had come upon her garden accidentally while hunting. She then spoke to him directly and said that
he was in a private garden and that were her father to find him there he would
be punished.
Vishnu said, “I am sorry
but I have no mind to leave you. God has given you this birth for my sake. Since I love you dearly, please marry me.”
Padmavati could not
believe her ears. She angrily said, “You
obviously have no idea who I am. Do you
think a princess would marry a hunter?
If you value your life you will leave at once.”
Vishnu smiled and said,
“Your rebuke is normal but you are mistaken.
We are destined for each other.
Status is no obstacle where there is love. I admire your beauty. You will marry me.” He moved closer to her.
Padmavati felt it would
be dangerous to remain and instructed her retinue to chase the rustic from the
garden. They threw large stones at the
Lord and one even killed his horse.
Badly injured, the Lord sorrowfully left the garden and returned home
with a heavy heart. When he told Vakula
Devi what had happened she said it was a mistake thinking a commoner could
marry a princess.
To explain the situation Vishnu said, “In the
last Yuga I was born as Rama.
To keep my father’s word I was exiled in a
forest for fourteen years. Ravana had
plans to abduct my wife, Sita, but Agni, the fire God, came to know of his
plans and substituted Vedavati for Sita.
I killed Ravana and Sita threw herself in the fire to prove that she was
chaste. Agni, Vedavati and Sita appeared
in the flames and Agni requested me to marry Vedavati. Although she was my wife Sita agreed. But since I was observing the vows of
celibacy I promised Vedavati that I would marry her in this the Kali Yuga. Akasha Raju’s daughter Padmavati is Vedavati
in this incarnation. Don’t you think I
should keep my promise?”
When
Padmavati returned to the palace she discovered that she could not keep the
beautiful form of the hunter out of her mind and eventually realized that she
loved him. Still, she knew that her
parents would never agree to such a marriage.
She lost interest in food and her daily routine and took to her bed
where she slowly wasted away pining for the hunter. Her distraught parents tried every known
remedy to no avail.
Vishnu
was also disturbed and realized that his mistake was not showing her his real
form so he dressed himself as a female fortune teller, took the name Singi and
stood in front of the queen’s balcony.
When the queen came out she thought that the fortuneteller might reveal
what was troubling her daughter and agreed to compensate her handsomely if she
could.
Singi sat Padmavati down in front of
her basket and prayed to the gods. Then
she said, “I will now tell you what is in your mind. The dark-skinned hunter you met in your
garden has stolen your heart. See here
on your hand, a strong matrimonial line is running this way across your
palm. Your desire will be fulfilled
before long. Now look into my
basket.” When Padmavati looked she saw
Vishnu, bent her head in shyness and ran smiling into her apartment.
The fortuneteller’s
words worried her mother, however and she told her husband who was also
concerned. As they were discussing the
problem Padmavati came and respectfully told her parents that even if the sun
and moon fell out of the sky she would marry the hunter. Seeing that her mind was fixed the parents
could do nothing.[22]
A few days later Vakula
Devi dressed as a renunciate came to see the king and queen. She told them that her ‘son’ who has the
power to rule the three worlds loved her daughter. She said that although he had lost his wealth
he was from a good family and that if they agreed to the marriage they would
attain fame and liberation. They liked
the idea but could not give their word until they consulted their guru, Suka Maharshi. The Maharshi[23]
said that their prospective son in law was none other than Vishnu, the lord of
the three worlds, and that the whole human race would benefit if they accepted
the proposal. They immediately drafted a
marriage proposal and presented it to the Lord who gladly accepted it.
The marriage caused
Vishnu a big problem because he was a pauper since his wife deserted him. As he was thinking about the problem Narada
appeared and suggested that he take a loan from Kubera, the cosmic treasurer. Kubera agreed. Vishnu promised to pay interest until the end
of the Kali Yuga and return the principal immediately thereafter.
The wedding was a
festive affair attended by beings from all the fourteen worlds, subtle and
gross. When it was over the bride and
bridegroom spent six months in the ashram of the sage Agasthya enjoying the
beauty of the Tirupathi hills. The Lord
so enjoyed himself that he decided to reside there until the end of the Kali
Yuga. To that end he asked two kings to
build him a temple on the hill above Tirupathi at a place now called Tirumala.[24] At the inauguration of the temple the Lord
entered and lit two lamps that will burn until the end of the present
Yuga.
While all these events
were taking place Laxmi was still deep in meditation at
The news so upset her
that she rushed to Tirupathi and confronted Vishnu and his new bride. The women immediately began quarreling. Vishnu couldn’t stand the racket, silently
stepped back and converted himself into a stone idol. Realizing they had lost their beloved the
women began to weep.[25]
The idol said, “Laxmi,
Padmavati belongs to the same caste as you.
In the last Yuga I was incarnated as Rama. During that time Agni got wind of Ravana’s
plan to abduct my wife Sita and substituted Vedavati for Sita. Vedavati was reborn as Padmavati. She suffered greatly at the hands of that
demon. Because I was observing celibacy
in that Yuga I gave her my word that I would marry her in the Kali Yuga. When
she understood the reason Laxmi embraced Padmavati and apologized for her
intemperate comments. Padmavati also
asked for Laxmi’s forgiveness.
Then Vishnu said to
Laxmi. “I have borrowed a lot of money from the cosmic treasurer for my wedding
and am deeply in debt. I don’t like this
situation and am always thinking how to pay the steep rate of interest. I request that you give my devotees very much
wealth so they will be tempted to sin more and pray to me for relief. I will appear in dreams and visions and
advise them to fill my coffers in the form of offerings to facilitate the
fulfillment of their vows.”[26]
Laxmi agreed.
Then he said, “My chest,
which was polluted when Brighu kicked me has since been purified through all
the trials and tribulations I have gone through while on earth looking for
you. You may therefore occupy your
original place.[27] Laxmi was pleased with the Lord’s words and
occupied her place on the right side of his chest while Padmavati occupied the
place on the left.
Vakula Devi came looking
for Vishnu and was distraught when she saw him standing as an idol.[28] But the idol said, “Mother, I am blessing you
with liberation. You may now adorn my
neck in the form of a Tulasi garland.”
She immediately transformed into a garland and went around the Lord’s
neck.
The symbolism of the
descent of Vishnu and his installation as the diety at Triupathi is profound
and complex. The following is a brief
summary. When when the sage Brighu (the
spiritual ego) kicks the God Vishnu, (the Self), in the chest (Heart) where his
wife the Divine Mother Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth (read love or wisdom)
lives. Angered by this blow she leaves
heaven (the state of union with God) and goes to earth (the place where people
suffer owing to lack of Self love) where she undertakes rigorous penance
(meditation) to regain her peace of mind.
The Self is not happy without love so Vishnu comes down to earth to find
his wife. Unlike the Biblical variant,
which condemns the divine couple and their offspring to endless suffering, the
Vedic Adam and Eve are reunited after a series of trials and tribulations.
The
Gods as Experiential Entities
The purpose of the Upanishads is to
awaken the mind to Reality, the Self. In
the Mandukya Upanishad, one of the ‘major’ Upanishads, a discussion of the Self
and its relationship to the waking, dream and deep sleep states of
consciousness is undertaken. It states
that with reference to the Self, which it defines as Reality, the other three
states are ‘unreal.’ The definition of
Reality in Vedic science is ‘that which endures before, during, and after time
and that which illumines and transcends the waking, dream, and deep sleep
states.’ Because something is unreal
does not mean that it cannot be experienced.
A mirage, for example, is experienced as water even though it doesn’t
exist as water. Our three ‘normal’
states of consciousness are experientially ‘real’ but have no lasting reality
because they are caught in the web of time, continually dissolving and
recreating themselves.
Scientific Materialism, the dominant
thought system in the West, only accepts sense information as valid knowledge
and therefore defines reality in terms of waking state experience. And conversely, it dismisses as unreal
experiences that belong to the dream state, the mind, although with the advent
of psychology, which is lobbying to become a science, this view is under
attack.
Is subjective experience
unreal? From the scientific materialist
point of view, yes. And by the
Upanishadic definition, yes. But if we
use the Upanishadic definition, the waking state is as unreal as the dream
state. Or, to express it differently,
assuming ignorance of the Self, the ‘normal’ state of mind, the dream state, is
as real as the waking state. Considering
this, it is not surprising that the Indian mind views subjective phenomena as
at least as real, probably more, than waking state events. Dismissing subjective experience as unreal
creates a serious problem because, although the body does not function in the
dream state, the mind functions in the waking state. Therefore, waking state experience is an
amalgam of sense perceptions and subjective activity: emotions, feelings,
beliefs, ideas, memories, dreams, visions, judgments, discriminations,
etc. If anything, inner experience is
more valuable, much more ‘us’ than anything that happens in ‘reality’
outside. Because how we see and feel
about things conditions how we react to each other our feelings and thoughts
need be understood and accepted, not dismissed as unreal.
How does this ineffable,
apparently untouchable, formless Reality become so easily available for
experience? Because it is ongoing in the
Heart of everyone. And how does a given
temple deity awaken one to it?
One of the most touching
temple experiences is a mother teaching a toddler to prostrate in front of a
deity. The child does not understand
what it is doing but accommodates the mother out of duty or love or for reasons
known only to it. Nonetheless the
prostration does not change its state of mind.
But slowly, over time, as its mind develops, it becomes aware of the
mother’s devotional feelings and the devotional atmosphere in the temple and
gains the devotional experience by osmosis.
And since this experience occurred in a temple in the presence of a
deity or at home in the puja (worship) room, it associates the experience with
the ritual of worship and the symbol on the altar. When this state of mind is established
subconsciously any familiar symbol can awaken it. And because it feels so good, the act of
worship is repeated over and over, deepening the feeling of love.
How does this work? Obviously, since the Self pervades every atom
of the universe and every thought and feeling in our minds, we need not run to
the temple to experience it. In fact
everyone has unconsciously developed devotional habits and worships deities of
their own making: nature, a film star, a guru, money…you name it. And whether our deities are sacred or
secular, the mechanism of devotion is universal.
Deities work because the
Self, our own Consciousness, knows what we need even when we don’t. “The light knoweth the darkness but the
darkness knoweth not the light.” When a
devotee approaches a deity he or she typically wants something, the solution to
a problem, for instance. When
approaching someone who has something we want we assume a humble anticipatory
state of mind. And when we lay out our
problem the mind is free of them…at least temporarily. And in that problem free moment the peace and
bliss of the Self floods into the mind/heart.
We assume that this feeling of peace and bliss comes from some unknown
source or the deity in front of us but in reality the deity was only a
catalyst, unlocking the door to the Self.
When I feel good problems tend to no longer be problems. Additionally, when I feel good the people who
can solve my problem are often attracted to me and may feel inclined to help me
solve them.
The temple and its
deities need not be used exclusively to remove obstacles. They may be used to express appreciation of
God, the Self. Contrary to what a
Westerner might imagine, many in India feel grateful for who they are and what
(little) they have and use the temple to express their gratitude. When this attitude is enshrined in the mind,
even a little seems like a lot.
Consequently,
To enjoy this energy,
leave your mental and emotional baggage behind.
Several rituals remind the devotee that he or she is entering sacred
space. The most common involves
discarding ones footwear outside the temple.
At some temples it is customary to remove one’s hair which is thought to
be a symbol of ego. It is very common to
touch the threshold when entering the temple to show respect for the Lord.
Invariably the first
deity one confronts at the temple entrance is the elephant God Ganesh, the
remover of obstacles. One should ask that all obstacles to a successful
experience of the Lord, the Self, be removed before beginning the symbolic
journey to the inner sanctum where one comes face to face with the deity, one’s
own inner Self.
Tiruvannamalai
The temple at Tiruvannamalai,
dedicated to the fire element, represents the temple as spiritual journey, a
movement from change to the changeless, the passage from time to the
timeless. The temple is a haven of peace
in the midst of the chaos and frantic motion of the typically Indian town, a
place where one can journey into the Self.
The spiritual journey is
a movement through five layers or levels of ones being. These five layers are described in the
Upanishad as (1) the food sheath, the physical body, (2) the breath or vital
air sheath, our physiological processes, (3) the emotional body, our sensate,
feeling nature, (4) the mind or intellect sheath, and (5) the bliss
sheath. Passing through these,
transcending them, one arrives at the inner sanctum, the Self. At the entrance to each of the temple’s five
levels one finds a large black stone cow contentedly staring toward the inner
sanctum. This cow, Nandi (bliss)
represents a clear, purified devotional mind turned inward and worshipping the
Self. The fire temple is situated on the
slope of the Holy mountain Arunachala with the lingam closest to the summit
suggesting an ascent from the lower to the higher, from time to timelessness,
from Self ignorance to Self knowledge.
South Indian temples are
typically surrounded by very high square or rectangular stone walls that form a
protective barrier around the deity just as the human body, for which they are
a symbol, surrounds and protects the Self within.[29] Access to the temple is gained through four
gopurams, gates, which tower above city and are noticeable from great
distances, calling the devotee to worship.
The word gopuram means ‘city of light” because they are usually adorned
with sculptures of hundreds of Pauranic deities. The deities or Gods represent the luminous
Self taking form and shining in the mind.
The four gopurams represent the four elements, gateways to the Self.[30] The elements are ‘gateways’ because we cannot
journey into the Self until we have understood the nature of the world in which
we live.
Important as it is, the
fire temple at Tiruvannamalai is overpowered by the holy mountain Arunachala,
one of
The temple at
Tiruvannamalai is called Arunachalishwara, (the Lord of the Unchanging
Light). The Self is often referred to as
“the fire of Consciousness.” Fire is an
appropriate Self symbol because it produces light and light illumines objects
just as the Self illumines our minds and, through the senses, the world around
us. At every shrine leading to the inner
sanctum, and indeed at many seemingly unlikely places throughout any temple,
small oil and camphor fires burn. When a
devotee feels the need to worship, he or she will contribute his or her camphor
to the fire to keep the fire alive. On
full moon nights, when upwards of one million devotees circumambulate
Arunachala, one can witness large fires at significant places on the path
around which scores of devotees are clustered in devotional fervor “taking the light.” Taking the light is a beautiful ritual
indicating the desire to receive blessings from the Self/Mountain. The devotee offers his or her heart, symbolized
by the white wafer, into the fire, the Self.
With each contribution the ‘Self’ fire blazes and the devotee bends
(surrenders) to ‘receive the light,’ by symbolically scooping up the fire in
his or her hands and washing his or her face with it. In its deepest sense the ritual acknowledges
the simple truth that our intelligence, our lives, are not separate from the
one fiery Intelligence illumining the whole cosmos. This intelligence or “fire’
not only illumines our bodies and minds but has taken form as the elemental
world and is, therefore, to be honored .
Accordingly the temple at Tiruvannamalai has been designated the ‘fire’
temple.
The story behind the
mountain told in the Shiva Purana is exceptionally mystical and is undoubtedly
responsible for its enduring fame. Long
before human beings appeared on the face of the earth, Brahma, the four-headed
Creator, was flying through the transcendental skies on his swan when he came
to Vaikuntha, the heavenly abode of Vishnu.
Vishnu, attended by millions of Gods and Goddesses, his eyes half open,
was lying blissfully on the endless coils of the serpent Sesha who was floating
in an infinite ocean of milk.
Brahma was annoyed when
Vishnu did not open his eyes and acknowledge his presence so he said, “Who do
you think you are that you can afford not to pay homage to the Creator of
everything? Without me you would not
even exist.”
Vishnu, irritated that
his sleep of yoga had been disturbed, replied, “I think you are slightly
confused. Perhaps you did not notice
this lotus growing out of my Divine navel.
If you look closely you will see a small God with four faces
suspiciously similar to yours sitting in the middle. The fact, my dear friend, is that only I am
Self created and you are merely in charge of the creation of the universe. You
are little more than one of my executives, albeit an important one.”
“What rubbish,” said
Brahma, “this lotus with me sitting on it is just the product of your yoga
maya, as unreal as a hare’s horn.”
The argument became
increasingly heated and the Gods witnessing it were concerned for the welfare
of the world should they actually come to blows, so Indra, king of the Gods,[31]
suggested that they consult Shiva, who he assured them would resolve the
issue.
So they all journeyed to
“See here,” he said,
casting down a blinding blazing column of white light that stretched upwards
and downwards as far as the eye could see, “whoever can find the end of this
column is indeed the greatest.”
Brahma, certain that he
would easily reach the end, assumed the form of a swan and began to ascend the
column. But it proved to be much taller
than he thought. In fact he became
slightly discouraged after flying at supersonic speed for several thousand eons
with still no end in sight. Just as he
was becoming tired and considered abandoning his search he encountered a lovely
flower emitting an intoxicating perfume falling slowly down the column.
He flew over and the
flower said to him, “I am the Kartigai flower falling from the head of
Shiva. I have been falling for infinite
aeons and will never reach the bottom.
You cannot reach the top. Go
back and tell Shiva that you have reached the summit. I will back you up. Even falsehood is recommended in times of
distress.”
This idea appealed to
Brahma who flew leisurely back down the column accompanied by the Kartigai
flower.
In the meantime, Vishnu,
who had assumed the form of boar and had begun digging down the column, also
became discouraged after many aeons and decided to give up his quest. He turned around and began ascending,
arriving back in
“How did it go,” Shiva
addressed the Gods?
Vishnu replied, “Great
indeed you are! I bow to you, Shiva,
whose glory can never be measured. I
bored for aeons and aeons and was unable to find the end of this blazing column
of light. ”
Shiva turned to Brahma
who said, “Unlike this inept fellow, I found the end. It’s true, this is an impressive column of
light and I had to fly rather fast to reach the end, but it was really no big
deal for a creative energetic person like me.”
The Kartigai flower
nodded in assent.
Shiva smiled inwardly
and transformed himself into a gigantic terrifying monster that reached down
and caught Brahma by the neck.
“You lie,” he
thundered. “And for this lie I am going
to remove all four of your arrogant heads.
You’re finished!”
Fearing for the world
should the Creator be destroyed, the Gods and Goddesses fell at the feet of the
monster and pleaded for mercy. Shiva,
the fount of all compassion, returned to this true form, recanted and released
Brahma to a sigh of relief from the deities.
“It is not right to lie
to make yourself look good,” said Shiva.
“Perhaps I was a bit hasty in my wrath.
Death is a punishment that does not fit the crime. However you should not go scot-free. Therefore, I decree that henceforth you will
not be worshipped in any temples on earth.
Nonetheless, I can see that you are contrite so I also decree that even
though a sacrifice is completed according to the scriptural injunctions, it
will not bear fruit without you”
As they stood before
him, Brahma and Vishnu saw the infinite column of light transform itself into
Shiva himself. They realized his (and
their own) true nature and immediately began to worship him.
Shiva said, “Oh,
devotees, I am infinite, the same in everyone and everything. I pervade every atom of the universe. This column of light, which you have realized
is not different from me, is a fitting symbol of me. It should be worshipped every day. But because only Gods can directly behold my
radiance, I encase this column inside a red mountain and place it on earth for
the benefit of human beings. This
mountain is the only true means of enjoyment.
Viewed, touched, or meditated upon, it removes the ignorance that causes
human beings to suffer. Many holy
centers will spring up around this mountain.
Prayers offered to it will be fulfilled.
To live at its foot and see me in it, grants salvation.”
Brahma and Vishnu said,
“Ocean of mercy. Forgive our
arrogance. You are the one God that
everyone is entitled to know. You are
the primordial fire without beginning and end.
You can only be worshipped in your linga state. You are the holy mountain Arunachala. We prostrate to you.”
This myth bears scrutiny
because it expresses several subtle spiritual truths, the first of which,
non-creationism, is unique to the Vedic tradition. Non-creationism means that if this is a
non-dual reality everything that we see is nothing but the Self and is
therefore uncreated and unmade because the Self is uncreated. The idea of a Creator, God, depends on the
idea of a creation. If this is so, why
is does there seem to be a creation apart from me, the Self? Because, the sages say, you are looking at
the Self through a deluded mind. And
this mind is interpreting or ‘creating’ non-dual Reality as if it were a
dualistic universe locked in time. .
At the same time, since
only those who know the Self know this, the creation is accepted as having a
‘qualified’ reality and therefore a creator is admitted. The lotus springing out of Vishnu’s navel
bearing the four-headed Brahma, the Creator, illustrates this truth. We see it also in the relationship of Shiva,
the primary Self symbol, to Brahma and Vishnu, the Creator and Preserver. Clearly, they do not enjoy his lofty status.
But the myth is really
about Self realization, the means of Self realization, the main obstacle to
Self realization, and spiritual self delusion.
Self
realization is depicted here as a journey to discover the end of an endless
column of light. The efficacy of two
traditional techniques, meditation and inquiry, are examined and their
limitations exposed. Brahma riding on a
swan symbolizes transcendental meditation, a flight into the spiritual sky,
attempting to take the mind beyond itself for the purpose of Self
realization. Vishnu riding on a boar
represents the process of self analysis: asking questions, boring into the
Self, trying to figure it out with the mind.
According to the myth, both are limited means, incapable of delivering
the spiritual goods. This is not to say
that either cannot work, just that the purpose of this myth, and indeed most of
the Puranas (which were designed to bring Vedic wisdom to the masses) is to
develop devotion, in this case to Shiva.
The
Kartigai flower that has ‘fallen’ from the head of Shiva represents a mind
‘fallen from Grace,’ one bereft of Self knowledge. After years of spiritual seeking before
reaching the goal it is natural to become discouraged and listen to the lies of
the separated or ‘fallen’ ego. This ego,
which is prone to self delusion, suggests that the seeker claim enlightenment
even before it is attained. The lie
prompts a severe reaction from the Self which cannot stand untruth. Compassion, however, is depicted as greater
than truth and Shiva relents. Vishnu,
who represents integrity, is not rewarded because virtue is its own
reward.
As a result of their
quest both Brahma and Vishnu, who represent a mind prepared by spiritual
practice, enjoy a darshan, direct experience of the Self. The story says they “saw the infinite column
of light transform itself into Shiva himself.
They realized his (and their own) true nature and immediately began to
worship him.” Once they have begun to
experience the Self, Shiva cements their Self knowledge by describing his
nature. “I am infinite, the same in
everyone and everything. I pervade every
atom of the universe.” And lest they
forget who they are he proscribes a path for reawakening; worship my linga,
Arunachala.
Ramanashram
and the Mountain Walk
As
predicted in the Purana many holy centers have sprung up around the mountain,
the foremost of which in modern times is Ramanashram, named after ‘the sage of
Arunachala,’ Ramana Maharshi, who experienced the Self as a boy of seventeen
and found his way to Arunachala where he lived for the rest of his long
life. Ramana was an exceptionally
luminous and compassionate sage who in the fifty years since his death has
nearly attained the status of a deity.
Consequently his ashram and the mountain caves where he meditated
attract people from around the world.
Circumambulation
of the mountain is thought to confer many blessings and on full moon nights
hundreds of thousands of devotees regularly journey from all over the region to
make the ten mile walk. At a
particularly significant spot on the inner path a small temple dedicated to the
hunter saint Kannapan sits on top of a large rock. The place is known by meditators as an energy
vortex and is meant to enjoy special sanctity owning to its location at the base
of a small hillock known as Shiva’s feet.
The feet are of great significance in Vedic culture because they
symbolize under standing, in this case knowledge of the Self.
According
to legend Kannapan was a devotee of Shiva who worshipped twice daily, before
and after work. To make the lingam, a
black monolith, seem more lifelike two eyelike reflective circles are often
placed several inches below it rounded top.
When the lingam is adorned with flowers, the dark inner sanctum, seen
from the distance of a few meters, appears to have a living deity staring out
at the devotees. The purpose of this is
to give the devotee the feeling that the Lord is sending blessings through the
eyes. The technical term for this experience
is ‘darshan,’ seeing the Lord. Or,
alternatively, letting the Lord ‘see’ you.
When the devotee locks his or her eyes on the Lord, the mind becomes
quiet and blessings in the form of peace or love floods into the devotee’s
heart from the Self within.
One
evening after the temple was closed, the lingam’s eyes, which were affixed with
a crude glue, came loose and fell to the floor.
When Kanappan, a simple rustic, came for his morning darshan he became
distressed because the Lord was unable to give darshan. Such was his love of Shiva that he walked
into the inner sanctum, took an arrow out of his quiver, cut out one of his own
eyes and tied it on the lingam. The
story goes that he was about to remove his remaining eye when Shiva appeared
out of the lingam and granted him liberation, thus sparing his eyesight.
The
small temple on top of the hill at Kalahasti is also dedicated to Kannapan who
has attained the status of a deity.
Kanchipuram, The Earth Element
A
creation and redemption myth stands behind the Ekambishwara temple at Kanchipuram. The temple is dedicated to the earth element
because it was on earth that the Goddess Parvati, the wife of Shiva was sent to
atone for the sin that started the world, the separation of Matter and
Spirit. The myth, which humorously and
elegantly presents the idea of separation from and re-union with the Divine, is
classic Vedanta in the form of the following story.
The
state of things before the creation of the universe is symbolized by the happy
‘heavenly’ married life of Shiva and his consort, Parvati, the Divine
Mother. In this primordial ‘state’
energy/matter is potential in Spirit, the Self.
It says in the text that Parvati served her three-eyed lord with immense
love. She worshipped him with a myriad
of offerings. To keep her from becoming
attached to him, Shiva, who enjoyed her love, feigned indifference, causing
Parvati to become despondent.
One
day Rati, the winged god of love, who had the power to enchant all living
things, came across Parvati moping in her garden. Upon learning the cause he offered to help
her cast a spell on Shiva. So he taught
her how to adorn her lovely body and move in the seductive ways that always
attract men. When she had learned
everything necessary to capture a man’s heart he encouraged her to try her
wiles on Shiva. One day as she was
charming and enchanting her Lord she playfully placed her hands over his three
eyes. Suddenly the cosmic dance stopped and whole universe was plunged in
darkness. The myriad cosmic suns and
moons refused to shine and creatures fell into a sleepy hypnotic trance. And even though she kept them there for a few
seconds darkness reigned on earth for aeons.[32]
When she removed them an immense radiant beam of light burst forth,
reducing a gleeful Rati, who had been hovering in front of Shiva watching the
seduction, to ashes and causing the whole cosmos to once again pulsate and
vibrate with life.
Because
of his immense compassion for the universe and to teach his passionate young
wife a lesson Shiva said, “Your innocent mind was led astray by the God of
love. And had your intemperate act been
without consequence I would forgive you immediately, but see the suffering it
has brought on the creation. Therefore,
to atone for your sin, I am beaming you down to earth where you will do intense
meditation for the purpose of becoming reunited with me.
In
the twinkling of an eye Parvati found herself sitting under a mango tree on the
banks of the River Kumba. Feeling the
immense loss of Shiva intently she entered the shallows near the tree,
fashioned a lingam out of the wet sand and began to worship it, praying that
she would be reunited with her Lord.[33]
To
test her devotion to his earthly form Shiva created a flash flood and sent it
roaring downstream.[34] Instead of running for high ground, the
Divine Mother wrapped herself around the lingam to protect it from the raging
torrent. When the waters subsided the
lingam was intact and she heard Shiva’s voice booming from the sky, “You have
passed your first test. To make your
devotion perfect you must do further penance at the holy Mountain Arunachala.”[35]
Another Arunachala Story
Accordingly the Divine Mother, full of
devotion for her Lord, journeyed to Arunachala.
She climbed to the top of the mountain where she sat in the lotus
posture, withdrew her senses into her mind and began to search within for the
place from which the “I” arises. She
became aware of a powerful radiant silence and sank into deep meditation on it.
A
powerful demon, Mahishasura,[36]
flying by in his aerial chariot noticed her sitting there, glowing with
ethereal beauty and became enflamed with lust.[37] His unwanted attentions so angered Parvati
that she assumed the form of the wrathful goddess Kali, mounted a lion, and
with a thousand weapons in her thousand hands, began to battle with the
demon. The battle raged for many years
until the Goddess gained the upper hand and severed the demon’s head with one
stroke of her gigantic sword.[38]
She
resumed her meditation with renewed concentration, worshipping Shiva with a
terrifying passion. It created so much
heat that even Agni, the god of fire, was forced to move from his home atop the
mountain. The heat scorched the earth
for miles around, killing all the plants and forcing the animals to leave. Such was her desire to be reunited with Shiva
that her energy turned the mountain (and indeed the whole earth) into a
shimmering molten golden mass of fire.
The
situation became so critical that the gods and goddesses who had been drawn
there by her immense devotion became concerned that the three worlds would be
totally immolated and went en masse to
“Obesiesances
to the self-born one from whom the three worlds with all the animate and
inanimate beings have originated,” they said.
“Profuse obesieances the great Self, destroyer of Karma,[39]
illuminator of everything that is.[40]”
“Get
to the point,” said Shiva who did not enjoy flattery even though it was all
true.
“The
heat from the Divine Mother’s penance is so intense that it threatens to
destroy the universe that you created,” they said. “Please do something to save the three
worlds.”
“This
whole business started when she fell under the spell of that little devil,
Rati, the god of Love,” said Shiva. “It
is a great sin to leave the bliss of union with me for paltry emotional
excitements. See the trouble she has
faced trying to get back to me. It is a
lesson to you all. She must pass one
more test before her work is finished.
Go to Arunachala and see if she desires anything other than union with
me.”[41]
They
approached the mountain and said to her, “For what purpose are you doing this
meditation? It is threatening to destroy
the three worlds. Don’t you think you
are behaving recklessly?”
“Don’t
laugh, when I tell you this,” Parvati said, “but it is my ardent desire to
marry Lord Shiva.”
The
Gods rolled their eyes and said, “Come, come my dear girl, how is that
possible? You are a mere mortal and
Shiva is the Lord of the whole cosmos.
How can such a union ever take place?”
“You
don’t understand because you are only Gods” she replied. “I love only him. I will prevail. Even if the heat from this longing destroys
life as we know it, I will not relent.
Please go away.”
Seeing
that she was ready to be liberated, Shiva appeared in the guise of a Brahmin
priest and asked what she was doing there, meditating so one-pointedly.
Parvati
honored the Brahmin and said, “Please do not think me presumptuous O learned
Brahmin, but I wish to wed none other than Lord Shiva. Unfortunately I have been meditating on him
for aeons to no avail. He seems quite
indifferent to my prayers. Therefore I will
end my life. Without Shiva life is
worthless.”
So
saying she created a blazing fire and prepared to jump into it, much to the
surprise of everyone.
“Before
you leap,” the Brahmin said, please listen to what I have to say. “I know Shiva
very well. He is not worthy of you. He is completely lacking in manners. He sleeps in graveyards and wanders about
clad only in a deer skin. His matted
locks are filthy and full of lice. He
associates with ghosts and goblins. He
has no pedigree and is of such low status no caste will claim him. Consequently he is unemployed and
unemployable. So what will a fine,
cultured woman like you do for friends and money? Furthermore, he is a heartless bastard,
incapable of love. Do you know that he
reduced the God of love to ashes with one glance from his third eye? He’s a beast through and through. I suggest
that you reconsider.”
“Ha!”
said Parvati scornfully, “You say you know Shiva but you cannot know
Shiva. He is beyond all your paltry
means of knowledge. You say he has a
certain form but you are quite mistaken.
He is beyond all forms. His true
form is formlessness. He fills every
atom of the universe with his being. He
is pure and beyond reproach. All the
gold in the three worlds cannot begin to measure one small fraction of his
immense wealth. He is the only friend I
want! Because he has not answered my
prayers I will end my life.”
Hearing
her fervent words the Brahmin melted into nothingness leaving Shiva standing
before her in all his glory. “Because of
your pure devotion I will serve you through all eternity. Come assume your rightful place next to me.”
Parvati
circumamulated the mountain and melted into the side of Shiva.
Chidambaram – The Cosmic Dance
The
myth behind the temple at Chidambaram shares elements of other myths and
introduces a new idea, the cosmic dance.
The story begins when Shiva and Vishnu appear in the forest at
Chidambaram to confront a group of sages[42]
whose spiritual wisdom has made them exceptionally arrogant. Shiva appears as a Brahmin renunciate and
Vishnu as a beautiful woman. All the
locals are smitten by their celestial beauty but the sages are unimpressed
because they know who they really are.
To show their superiority the sages raise a sacrificial fire from which
a fierce tiger springs on Shiva. Shiva
subdued and skinned the animal, wearing its hide as a glorious ornament. Next the sages caused a huge snake to emerge
from the fire and attack Shiva who tamed it and wrapped it around his
neck. The rishis final weapon was a
powerful dwarf who Shiva also subdued.
With the dwarf writhing on the ground beneath his feet Shiva began a
victory dance, much to the delight of the Gods who had gathered to witness his
confrontation with the sages.
When
Adishesha, the Cosmic Serpent on whose infinite coils Vishu reclines in Heaven,
heard of Shiva’s dance, he immediately incarnated as the sage Patanjali and
came to the forest to witness the dance.
There he met a sage who, owing to his great devotion to Shiva had
obtained tiger’s claws for hands and feet.
The claws permitted him to climb up trees and suck the nectar from the
flowers.[43] The two of them journeyed through the forest
until they found Shiva dancing ecstatically in a grove near the shine of Kalika
Devi.
Kalika
Devi, the Divine Mother, was unhappy to see another God dancing in her
territory attracting so much attention, so she challenged him to a dance
competition but Shiva won. His dance
produced so much bliss that his audience would not go home so he agreed to
perform it forever in the inner sanctum of the temple at Chidambaram.
‘Chid’ means Consciousness, the Self, the
essence of things, and ‘ambara’ means space or place. So the word means ‘the place where
Consciousness dwells,’ the ‘Heart Space.’
Both ‘space’ and ‘heart’ are common Self symbols. The Self is like space because it contains
everything in it and at the same time it pervades everything. The word ‘heart’ should be taken as ‘essence’
as in the phrase, ‘the heart of the matter.
The Self is the essence of everything.
This myth presents many interesting ideas. In most Pauranic stories the Gods do not
manifest their real forms when they first appear on earth but are disguised as
normal human beings or animals. By this
we are meant to understand that within every living creature the Divine
dwells. So we see Shiva, the Self,
masquerading as a human being, a Brahmin priest. He is accompanied by Vishnu as Mohini. Mohini is a name that comes from the word
‘moha’ which means delusion. So we can
interpret this to mean that when he descends from this Himalayan peak (the Self)
he forgets who he is. The statement that
ordinary persons are deluded by the appearance of these two celestials can be
taken to mean that in our normal state of spiritual ignorance we only see the
surface person. That the reality dwells
beneath the surface is indicated by the statement that ‘the sages were
unimpressed because they knew who they (Shiva and Vishnu) really are.’
The
purpose of life on earth according the Vedas is to know who we really are. This knowledge results in our liberation from
all the false concepts about who we are that we have developed over the course
of our lives. The way we test our Self
knowledge is by putting it up against the wisdom of scripture, symbolized here
by the sages and their sacrificial fire.
Self knowledge is often referred to as the fire of knowledge[44]
and is given as a jnana yagna (knowledge sacrifice) by those who know it.
The
first erroneous self-concept that a human being needs to be overcome is ‘I am
the body,’ symbolized by the fierce tiger.
The body is our animal nature, full of passion and fear. Shiva destroys this idea and wears the skin
as an ornament. The ‘skin’ symbol is apt
because it carries the notion of something non-essential. The meaning is that he has peeled away all
the romantic notions about the body and seen it for what it is, a superficial
dead outer covering, a ‘sheath’[45]
to use the technical Vedantic term. The
idea that the body is ‘dead’ means that it is composed of matter, food to be
specific, and only seems to be sentient because of its association with the
eternal living Self within it.
The
second realization he needs to gain before he can perform the victory dance of
Self realization is that the subtle and causal bodies are equally not
self. The Subtle body is our emotional
and thinking faculties and the causal body our sub and unconscious minds,
symbolized by a gargantuan snake. The
snake lives in dark hidden recesses below the surface of the earth like the
Unconscious mind which is the source of Subtle Body phenomena. Shiva does not kill this snake but subdues
it, and wears it as an ornament. This
means that the mind must not be destroyed to realize the Self, but that it
needs to be tamed through understanding.
The
final stage of the process of Self realization is the domination of ego by the
Self. The ego is considered a dwarf
because it is a stunted, obdurate idea of self, one that refuses to grow, one
that needs to be kept firmly under the foot of the Self. It should be noted that the ego has not been
slain, merely subdued. However it is not
dominating the Self as it does in unenlightened people. Instead it is firmly under the foot of the
Self.
Finally,
the defeat of Shakti in the dance contest is an important symbol. It means that the Self is Awareness, not
energy. Many people on the spiritual
path worship Shakti (spiritual energy) without a consciousness of Shiva, pure
Awareness. So the dance contest is the
Purana’s way of way of saying that Awareness is a higher principle than energy.
Shiva depends on nothing. He is self
created and self supporting. But Shakti,
energy and matter, is completely dependent on Awareness. To worship Shakti is foolish because she is
always changing. Once she has lifted you
up she lets you down.
Churning the Milky Ocean
A
long time ago the gods learned of a chalice of nectar, symbol of the Self,
sitting on the bottom of a deep ocean, the mind. The possessor of this chalice would attain
immortality. The Gods tried to find the
chalice but were unsuccessful.
Dejected,
they went to the Vishnu, the omniscient all-pervading Supreme Being and told
him of their desire. Moved by compassion
Vishnu agreed to help.
"Churn
the ocean until the chalice comes to the surface," he said.
"Churn
the ocean? It cannot be done," they
said.
"Sorry,”
said the Lord, "it’s the only way.
Think about it. Maybe you will
come up with something."
In
those days mountains had wings and flew around doing what mountains do when
they have time on their hands. Indra,
king of the Gods, saw a holy mountain flying around and had an idea.
Hey,"
he called, "
The
mountain, always eager to chat with the king of the Gods, flew over and landed
nearby.
After
explaining the situation, Indra said, "So you see, you would make a
perfect churn. You could sit down in the
middle of the ocean and enough of you would stick out so we could wrap a rope
around your neck and pull. What do you
say?" he said, pleased with his idea.
"Why
not?" said the mountain affably.
"As long as it does not take too long. I have things to do next week."
"No
time at all," said Indra who had no idea what time was because he lived in
a timeless world. "We'll have you
out of here as soon as we get the treasure.
Not to worry."
The
day was hot and Mandara had been flying around all morning so the idea of
cooling off in the ocean of milk seemed attractive. He flew out to the center and settled in.
"So
far so good," said Indra. "Now
we need a rope."
"There's
no rope in heaven that long," said the Gods in unison. "Not a chance. Forget it."
"I
hate to admit it but I think you're right," said Indra sitting down in
despair.
Just
then Vasuki, the cosmic serpent, slithered by and Indra was struck with another
idea.
"Hey
Vasuki," said Indra motioning him over. "I want to talk with
you."
"Ok,"
said Vasuki, “What's up?"
Once
Indra had explained the situation Vasuki agreed, swam out and wrapped himself
around the top of the protruding mountain, his head resting on one shore and
his tail on the other. One group of gods
took the head, another the tail. They
pulled and pulled but nothing happened.
Dejected,
they approached Vishnu who suggested enlisting the help of the demons who were
very strong, an idea they found distasteful but eventually accepted.
Indra
instructed the demons to pull on the tail.
They felt insulted and refused.
"You pull it,” they said.
“We want the head."
The
gods did not want the tail either and a furious altercation broke out.
To
resolve it Vishnu suggested flipping a coin.
The Gods got the head so the demons unhappily agreed to pull on the
tail.
Their
enthusiastic churning brought forth many interesting and valuable treasures
from the depths. Each time one would
appear they would retrieve it and ask Vishnu if it were the immortal
nectar.
“Keep
churning,” Vishnu said, “You’ll know it when you see it.
They
continued to churn and after some time noticed a foul black liquid start to
bubble up.
“You’re
getting closer,” said Vishnu.
Soon,
however, they realized that the black liquid was a virulent poison that spread
itself over the land killing every living thing. The fumes were so toxic the gods and demons
who are normally immune to such things began to feel faint and lessened their
efforts.
As
it so happened at this moment that Shiva and Parvati were flying through the
air on the cosmic bull, Nandi. Parvati
noticed that something was wrong and called Shiva’s attention to the situation. He immediately landed on the shore, strode
out into the middle of the ocean, scooped up the poison in his hands and drank
it. When Parvati realized that he would
die trying to save the Gods and Demons she choked him and the poison came to
rest in his neck. Henceforth Shiva was
known as Neelakanta, the ‘blue necked’ god.
Seeing
that there was no longer a threat, the Gods and Demons renewed their efforts
and eventually an emerald green chalice glowing with an ethereal light and
filled with the immortal nectar arose from the depths to the cheers of the
participants. It was so luminous and
beautiful that everyone understood immediately what it was.
An
argument ensued about the division of the spoils and when it became
particularly heated the demons grabbed the chalice and ran off with the gods in
hot pursuit. Eventually, somewhere over
India they caught up, grabbed the chalice, and in the ensuing struggle four
drops of nectar fell to earth, landing on holy rivers at Haridwaar, Nasik,
Allahabad, and Ujain.
These
places are therefore considered to be extremely sacred and, in addition to
serving as pilgrimage centers, host the Kumba Mela, a celebration of immense
importance that attracts tens of millions of pilgrims every three years. Astrologers have calculated to the minute the
moment when each drop landed at each spot and it is believed that to bathe in
the river at that time washes away all sins.
Although carefully organized, occasionally at the most auspicious moment
the crowds stampede into the river many die.
Death in these circumstances is considered fortunate, however, because
it is thought to release the soul from bondage to the eternal wheel of birth
and death.
What it Means
Hidden
in this entertaining myth are some very important spiritual truths. The ‘nectar’ is of course the Self. Nectar means essence. Immortality is the nature of the Self. To know that one is the Self is to know that
one is immortal. Immortality is
liberation from the ravages of time, the most sought after goal. Who seeks it?
Gods and Demons. Gods represent
the spiritual forces in the mind. These
forces always seek to know their origin.
Demons represent the negative materialistic forces in the mind. These powerful forces cause suffering and
therefore it is in the interest of the mind to remove them. It is only by ‘drinking the nectar of Self
knowledge’ that the mind is purified of its negative tendencies.
Where
is the nectar located? At the bottom of
the ‘milky ocean.’ The ‘milky ocean’
stands for a pure mind. Milk is a symbol
of purity. That the nectar is at the
bottom means that the Self, luminous awareness, is the foundation, the
substrate of the mind. To bring this great treasure up to the surface is the
task that awaits anyone seeking Self knowledge.
‘The surface’ symbolizes the conscious mind. The knowledge “I am limitless awareness”
needs to be the foundation of one’s conscious identity. How is this to be accomplished? By churning the mind. Churning is a common spiritual symbol in
Vedic literature. The purpose of
churning is to bring forth the butter (Self) hidden in the milk (the
mind). Spiritual practice involves
stirring up one’s beliefs and opinions with the mantra, “Who am I?” This allows the seeker to separate false self
notions from the truth of his or her nature.
When the mind consistently engages in Self inquiry it becomes
powerful. The ‘valuable treasures from
the depths’ that appeared before the poison represent the psychic powers that
accrue to anyone doing intense spiritual work.
These are meant to be rejected.
Just
before the Self is to be realized the mind vomits forth all its deepest darkest
poisions. It is attacked by intense
doubt. Fears and temptations arise in
it. How should these dark forces be
dealt with? They should be neutralized by the practice of non-attachment and
kept away from the head and the heart so they do not poison one’s thinking or
one’s devotion to the truth. The neck is
a neutral zone between the head and the heart.
Devotional symbolism
The idea that bhakti,
devotion, is a unique path is relatively modern invention. It is not mentioned in the Vedas. This is because what has come to be thought
of as Bhakti Yoga, the devotional path, is nothing more than the practice of
rituals. Rituals are karma. Therefore devotees are karmis, doers of
action. The Vedas proscribe only two
lifestyles: the sannyassi and the householder.
Sannyassis are people who, owing to the understanding that there is no
doer, are not enjoined to practice ritual.
Householders take themselves to be doers and therefore they practice
karma. They practice karma because they
desire things and rituals have proven to be a legitimate path to the attainment
of various sought after ends. Both are
going for moksha and both are motivated by love of truth. Therefore devotion cannot be a separate
path. Devotion is simply the motivation
to pursue whatever one pursues. It is
common to all human beings.
It so happens that
people seeking liberation will only be successful if the mind is prepared. To prepare the mind the ancient texts
recommend that devotion for God be cultivated. The preparation consists in
changing the way the mind views its world.
It needs to see itself and the body as objects given by God for the
express purpose of worship rather than as vehicles for satisfying worldly
desires. It must be trained to take
everything in life, not just religious symbols, as God. For example, the devotee is to see food as
God, the eater as God, and the body as God’s temple. One’s spouse and children are to be regarded
as God's own, every spoken word taken to be the name of the Lord and all
actions, no matter how apparently mundane, as service to God. Bending, lying, or kneeling are to be
considered prostration to God, walking as circumambulation of the Deity, all
lights as symbols of the Self, sleep as union with God, and rest as
meditation. Every person the devotee
contacts must be offered loving service, as if he or she were the Divinity
itself. With the intention of keeping
God’s name continually in the mind, in this manner mundane rituals from washing
dishes to sweeping the floor are converted to sacred rites.
To a fervent
devotee religious icons (stone, wood, paper, clay, and metal statuary) are not
viewed merely as elevating or provocative symbols but are to be bathed, fed,
entertained, spoken to slept, and worshipped as living Divinity. On special holy days in
To the
materialist mind, projecting life into inanimate objects seems the height of
irrationality but the practice is good psychology from a devotional
perspective. Just as an actress
‘becomes’ the person she is portraying by totally identifying with every aspect
of the character’s life, the devotee discovers identity with the inner Self
through intense identification with the symbol.
The greater the identification with one’s chosen symbol the greater is
the love for what it symbolizes.
Contemplating on the life of an avatar or saint intensifies devotion,
for example. The more intense the devotion the more likely it is to cause an
epiphany, a vision of the Self. Having
witnessed the beauty of the Self it is impossible not to fall in love and
become passionately attached. Because
worldly beauties pale, outer attachments, personal views, automatically fall
away.
The tension between the mind’s
inward moving spiritual forces and its outward turned material forces make
devotional practice difficult. At the
onset material energies dominate and redirecting attention to God is difficult. The worship of every thing as the Beloved,
however, counteracts the dark forces.
Relationship Symbols
Nobody lives in a cave
these days. No matter how ‘spiritual’ we
are we are caught up in a web of relationships all our lives. Even if we are not immediately involved with
people in a meaningful way the relationships that set us on our paths still
exist in our minds and color the way we think of ourselves and respond to
life. These psychic remnants need not be
a source of psychological dysfunction and send us off to the therapist’s couch;
they can be transformed into devotional tools that prepare the mind for Self
realization by converting worldly emotions into devotion for the Self. Any psychological tendency and the
relationships it spawns, no matter how negative, can awaken love of God. For example, if a parental relationship
functioned successfully, we will have developed love and respect for elders, an
attitude or ‘bhava’ that can quickly be converted into love and respect for
God.
The Slave
Slavery is a
common spiritual symbol. It is based on
the idea that we are all slaves to our conditioning. Who isn't chained to physical passions,
indentured to selfish feelings, painfully shackled to unforgiving
thoughts? The more we strive for
freedom, rail and rebel against the injustices of society and aggressively
court empowerment, the more we admit our bondage to the unreal.
To convert
the feeling of powerlessness into a positive devotional force is the purpose of
‘dasya bhava,’ a devotional psychology ultimately leading to self love and
freedom. A service-oriented psychology,
the devotee worships God and Its manifestations, people particularly, with a
whole heart, putting his or her life completely in God's hands, seeing his or
herself as God's property, faithfully and diligently executing all Divine
instructions with mindless efficiency.
Such devotees support and maintain religious, charitable, and spiritual
institutions, faithfully serve enlightened souls, spiritual teachers, and
God-intoxicated devotees.
The Slave is
considered a sophisticated love game because it develops loyalty and respect,
natural feelings in the presence of The Master/Mistress. Secondly, to distinguish God's voice from the
many self-serving ego voices requires a quiet mind and keen
discrimination. Diligently practiced,
this bhava quickly reduces ego inflations to rubble.
The Wife
If The Slave is not your cup of tea
try The Wife, another high devotional stance.
The tie between the husband and wife is the strongest and sweetest in
the world, containing all love expressions, particularly sexual intimacy, which
is taken to symbolize the union of the devotee and God, the ecstatic wedding of
the individual and supreme Selves. In
this mood of complete identification and attachment the devotee, regardless of
sex, sees God as the husband or wife, to honor and obey in every life
situation, even beyond the grave. Just
as devoted spouses will gladly suffer for each other, the devotee will suffer
any misery on behalf of his or her beloved Husband or Wife.
A quotation
found on the back of an eighteenth century painting reproduced in a book
entitled, Krishna, the Divine Lover, illustrates the mood as practiced by a
sect of devotees known as the Shakti Bhavas, worshippers of the Divine Mother,
Radha, consort of Krishna.
"This
sect is in favor with those with an effeminate turn of mind. They declare themselves to be the female
companions of Radha, with the idea of paying her homage and establishing
identity, even taking on the manner of speech, gait, gestures and dress of
women. At monthly intervals, in the
manner of menstruating women, they put on red-colored clothes as if affected by
menstruation and pass three days in this state.
After menstruation is over, they take a ceremonial bath. In the manner of married women anxious to be
physically united with their husbands as enjoined in the scriptures, they take
to themselves on the forth night a painting of Sri Krishna, and stretch
themselves, raising both legs, utter "ahs" and "oohs,"
adopt coy women-like manners, and cry aloud,
"Ah Krishna, I die! Oh
The Friend
Friendship is
a more common devotional style. In it
equal love flows between God and the devotee.
God is seen as a tried and true confidante, a close relative or family
member, one with whom innermost secrets can be shared. "Henceforth I call you not servants, for
the servant knoweth not what the lord doeth, but I call you friends, for all
things I have heard of my Father, I have made known to you."
Practitioners
of this bhava find their greatest happiness in the happiness of God in others
and dedicate themselves to the spiritual welfare of their friends. As do close friends, the devotee acutely
suffers moments of separation, continually craving God's company, either in the
form of a deep experience, or through communication and conversation with other
devotees. The tender, joyful, and
playful relationship of nine and ten year old children serves to model this
charming mood which sees God as a dear playmate sporting among His or Her
creations.
The Child
A popular bhava
because we so easily identify with childlike parts of the psyche, this method
is based on the universal need of children to love their parents. The devotee is enjoined to love God with the
unsuspecting faith of the child, acknowledging and accepting his or her state
of total helplessness, ignorance, dependence, and attachment. Practically the devotee treats all fatherly
and motherly figures as God, including his or her own parents. Parents, our physical source, make nice
symbols of God, our spiritual source.
The realization that we are part and parcel of His or Her being instills
confidence in our own divinity.
Similar to
The Slave, this love game is considered an imperfect vehicle for God
realization because it does not, except indirectly, cultivate knowledge of God,
leaving the devotee vulnerable to exploitation and manipulation from both inner
and outer sources. Ultimately, of
course, love begets knowledge because the intellect develops natural curiosity for
what the heart loves, but in the short run this devotional posture is at best a
preliminary step in the soul's long march home.
Because this style of worship produces such deep attachment, unless the
devotee cultivates understanding of the formless aspect of God through
scriptural study and meditation, he or she is in danger of forgetting God's
greatness and glory, and merely using God, like a child its parents, to satisfy
basic needs.
Mom and Pop
The parent
symbol is said to be superior to the child because parental love is tempered
with understanding, a sense of duty and responsibility. The precious and profound love of God
produced by this mood is balanced and enhanced by an equally deep attempt to
probe the mysteries of the Divine through scriptural study, meditation, and
reflection.
It taps the
universal need to parent and can be successfully practiced by anyone who has
felt the need to protect and nurture a small helpless creature. Children, because of their purity, innocence,
and guileless bliss, make excellent symbols of God. When the devotee develops the parental
feeling for his or her inner Self, he or she shines with maternal or paternal
splendor. When maternal feelings for God
achieve rapturous intensity, this mood is even known to produce mammary
secretions in women!
Because it
forces the devotee to identify with the "inner parent," this mood
helps heal the negative views of parents that accompany the reluctance to leave
their ‘inner child’ and attain spiritual maturity. The bhava also teaches the devotee to detach
from ideas of power, fear, and punishment associated with God. Calling into questions ideas of reverence and
obedience, the bhava also roots out atavistic concepts of low self esteem and
unworthiness associated with God's glory, majesty, and grandeur - projections
of a primitive religious consciousness.
Unlike the child, the mother and father are not moved to awe in the
presence of the child. Because they
cannot ask favors of a child the bhava negates the tendency to ask favors of
the Lord. And, like parents their
children, the devotee is enjoined to make any sacrifice for the sake of God.
The Passionate Lover
A selfless
lover eager to gratify his or her beloved is the intriguing model for this
bhava which takes the bliss of physical orgasm as a symbol of the powerful
experience of ecstatic meditation on the Self.
It is often considered the most advanced love game because passionate
spiritual love is the hardest to develop owing to the difficulty of
consistently experiencing the Self.
Because of excessive attachment brought on by the experience of extreme
joy in the presence of God, it is equally difficult to break.
A completely
spiritual love, the devotee sees God, the innermost Self, as divinely beautiful
and lovely, an Adonis or Aphrodite, to be worshipped with an affection verging
on the erotic. In this style of love,
all conventions, reservations, hesitations, and personal views are cast aside
and an exclusive, potentially jealous, love cultivated. A gargantuan appetite, craving for the
embrace of God, is characteristic of this love game. Just as lovers locked in the throes of orgasm
do not know what is inside or outside or which body is which, the devotee in
union with the Self knows neither internal nor external, and is unable to
distinguish his or her body from God's (all matter). In the culmination of this bhava all sense of
duality disappears, leaving only the sweetest bliss.
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
No experience
lasts forever. The ecstatic mind
eventually returns to its normal state.
In this bhava the normal state is treated as an opportunity to develop
love in absence, just as a lover’s desire for the beloved is increased by
separation.
The emotional
symptoms of the absence bhava are sleeplessness, helplessness, fickleness, depression,
and anxiety. When they descend from the
ecstatic heights of devotion, devotees practicing this bhava often see God as a
fickle, inconsiderate, unfaithful lover prone to selfish disappearances and are
not above exhibiting signs of haughty superiority and disdain, fervent
yearning, regret because of the Beloved's uncaring attitude, and a sense of
folly for having become involved with God in the first place. Occasionally the separation causes such
anguish the devotee accuses the Lord of cruel injustice: the perverse
dispensation of pleasure to others while the devotee, who has not forgotten the
Beloved for a minute, continues to suffer.
The Forbidden Lover
Operating
under the assumption that the more love is obstructed, the more it intensifies,
this bhava, a variation of the Passionate Lover, converts feelings of secrecy
and shame associated with love into a positive devotional psychology.
Love of God
often awakens in the most unlikely and inconvenient circumstances. When a
declaration of love would invite ridicule, condemnation, and persecution,
taking God as a forbidden lover is helpful.
Devoid of outer signs, the Forbidden Lover is a "stealth"
psychology, through which the love of God grows by inner yearning, silent
repetition of the Holy Name, and meditation.
Devotees whose possessive, insecure, and jealous spouses can't tolerate
the idea of inner freedom and divine love can benefit greatly from this bhava.
The Hindu Dieties
Ganesh
Some effort is required to
read the Pauranic stories of the Gods but access to the Self through the
popular deities is effortless because their images are ubiquitous. I think it would be fair to say that Ganesh,
the elephant God, is the most popular deity in the Hindu pantheon and the
easiest to decode. If you wish take him
as a charming somewhat bizarre cartoon, ask him to remove the obstacles to the
satisfaction of your desires and leave it at that. Or if you want to go deeper use his divine
form to enter the shining world of the Self.
Ganesh has a fat human
body and the head of an elephant. How
he got the elephant head and what it means is revealed in the following
story. Shiva had been meditating on the
top of
‘What
do you want?” he asked Shiva.
“Step
aside,” Shiva said, “I want to see Parvati.”
“You’ll have to wait,” said
Ganesh, “I’ll ask her if she is willing to receive visitors.”
“I
said get out of my way,” Shiva replied with considerable irritation.
“I
said you’ll have to wait,” replied Ganesh protectively. “I don’t know who you think you are but you
certainly are lacking in manners.”
At
this Shiva who was known to have a short temper brandished his Trishool and
shouted, “Get out of my way you fat little dwarf or I’ll cut off your head.”
“Over
my dead body,” said Ganesh digging in his heels.
Shiva
swung his trishool and cut off his son’s head just as Parvati, hearing the
shouting, arrived at the door.
“What
have you done, you beast!” she screamed looking at the dead body of her
son. You better fix this right away or
you will never the see the inside of my bedroom again.”
Realizing
that his chances of getting laid were fast approaching zero Shiva said, “You do
one thing. Run out and bring the first
creature you see that has a head.”
When
she got to the street she saw an elephant coming her way. She led the elephant to Shiva who cut off its
head and stuck it on Ganesh’s body. He
immediately revived, Parvati was thrilled to have her son back and Shiva was
invited in.
What it Means
A Freudian psychologist might
have a field day with the Oedipal implications of this myth but it was never
intended as a statement about the condition of the human psyche. The purpose of the Ganesh symbol is to reveal
the nature of the Self beyond the mind.
Ganesh as a boy represents
any human being who does not know who he is.
In fact he is the son of Shiva, which is to say, the son of God. He does not know this, however, because his
understanding is limited. He is just a
‘boy’ spiritually speaking. Elephants
are symbols of intelligence and memory.
When Ganesh confronts Shiva, his own innermost Self, he is relieved of
his limited understanding. The elephant
head represents the Vedas, the knowledge of the Self. The Self is the source of our
intelligence. The message of the Vedas
are what needs to be remembered if we are to gain Self knowledge. What is Self knowledge? That I am limitless Awareness, without name
and form.
If you look into the
meaning of his name you will discover that he is the Self. Gana means planet and Isha means the
ruler. He is the ruler of the
planets. The thoughts in our minds
revolve around the Awareness just like the planets revolve around the sun. This means that the mind is useful only
because it structured by an eternally consistent power. The millions of subjective events that take
place in our consciousness depend on Awareness just as the planets need the
sun’s gravitational field to remain in orbit.
Without it they would spin out of control and the solar system would no
longer be a ‘system.’ Life would be
impossible in a chaos because purposeful work would be impossible. So Awareness ‘rules’ the mind. It illumines the mind like the sun illumines
the planets. If Awareness is withdrawn
from the mind, as it is in deep sleep, the mind dies.
Ganesh has only one
tusk. The other has been broken off.
This means that the Self is non-dual.
Two symbolizes duality and one non-duality. Shiva was entreated by the Gods to give out
the Vedas for the sake of the world. He
agreed but with one stipulation; that he would not repeat even one word. Ganesh agreed to record the Vedas and duly
took up his pen. Shiva began but in the
middle of the discourse Ganesh’s pen ran out of ink. Fearing that he would miss something while
filling his pen he broke off his tusk and continued to write without missing a
word. This means that the words of the
Vedas destroy one’s dualistic views. In
other words Ganesh attained enlightenment hearing the teachings of the Vedas.
Every aspect of his
wonderful form speaks of non-duality.
His huge round belly, for instance.
Non-duality, you say? What is the
connection? Answer: the Self is purna,
fullness. This means that nothing can be
added to you or subtracted from you. As
the Self you are always satisfied.
Ganesh rides on a rat or
has a small mouse at his feet. Rodents
are symbols of desire. They have so much
desire they are continually active.
Desire is synonymous with the ego.
Because it feels limited, inadequate and incomplete the ego desires to
complete itself by obtaining things in this world. Desires control people who do not know who
they are but the enlightened have transcended desire; they are non-doers. You can only attain the status of a non-doer
if you realize that you are whole and complete by nature. If you know this you do not feel the need to
do anything to gain anything.
Ganesh has four
arms. This means that the Self has four
‘limbs.’ They are (1) the
emotional/feeling function, (2) the intellect or thinking function, (3) the ego
or ‘I’ sense and (4) memory.
In his upper right hand
he is holding an open lotus. The lotus
is a symbol of enlightenment. It is
closed at night (spiritual ignorance) and opens in the light (Self knowledge).
In his upper left hand
he carries an axe representing discrimination.
Discrimination is the power to distinguish what is real from what
isn’t. The Self alone is real, meaning
enduring. It’s forms are unreal. Enlightenment is nothing but
discrimination.
His lower right hand is
in abaya mudra and is holding a mala.
Abaya mudra is the gesture of fearlessness. The Self is fearless and grants protection
from fear. The mala represents spiritual
practice. The purpose of a mala is to
remove mal. Mal are subjective
impurties. Subjective impurities fall
into two categories: rajas and tamas.
Rajas is passion and desire. It
produces much emotional and mental agitation and is inimical to Self
realization. Tamas is stupidity, sloth,
and inertia. It causes the mind to
cloud. The Self cannot be seen in a
sleepy mind. Discrimination does not
function when the mind is dull or passionate.
In the lower left hand
Ganesh is holding a big bowl of sweets.
This means that the Self is bliss, the sweetest thing. There is nothing dearer or more sweet than
one’s Self.
Ganesh sports a
beautiful golden crown, symbolizing dominion, power, and overlordship. The Self has dominion over everything in so
far as it is the source of everything.
It is omnipotent and as such rules the world.
Kali
The Pauranic Deities are
a divine smorgasboard. There are many
Self symbols because people’s tastes are diverse. Since all of these deities reference the same
object just as all food serves the same purpose you can access the Self through
innumerable pathways.
Kali is one of the most
provocative symbols of the Self. Yes,
she is intelligent and compassionate but she is also aggressive and prone to
combat. Feminists and lesbians love her
for obvious reasons. But, like all Hindu
deities, she is not a statement about the mind.
There are many images and stories of Kali but the one I have chosen to
discuss reveals a particularly important truth about the quest for
enlightenment.
Kali is the Self in the
form of Time. Time is the great
destroyer. She is the feminine counterpart
of Shiva. Yes, the Self is responsible
for the decay and destruction that is one aspect of its creation but the
destruction we see depicted here…murder…is of a different order. To divine the meaning of this symbol we need
to understand the stages of enlightenment.
We come into this life
experiencing our limitlessness and oneness with everything but, because the
intellect has yet to develop, we do not understand what we are
experiencing. When the intellect does develop it is trained to think of
the self as limited, incomplete and inadequate and is encouraged to solve the
problem of inadequacy by picking up experience in life. At a certain
point, the individual comes to realize that no matter how much experience he or
she can garner, the experienced objects and activities do not produce lasting
happiness. This is usually an unpleasant
realization, often resulting in a profound disillusionment. It is frequently referred to as the ‘dark
night of the soul’ in religious literature or ‘hitting bottom’ in popular
culture.
Most react to this
existential crisis by sinking into distracting habits, mind numbing substances
and/or frivolous entertainments, but for unknown reasons a few begin to enjoy a
variety of peculiar and invariably confusing religious or spiritual
experiences that lead them to the idea of God or some sort of ‘inner light’ or
‘higher state.’ And at some point during this period the person becomes
convinced that he or she can find happiness ‘within.’
The second stage is the
conscious search for the Self because the Self, it is rightly believed, is the
only source of lasting satisfaction.
During this stage the mind ‘enters the stream’ to use a Buddhist
metaphor; it finds a spiritual path.
Spiritual culture is the road to liberation. However, it can also become the final
obstacle because the seeker can develop and cling to a developed identity as a
seeker. Liberation is the realization
that the Self is limitless and that the ‘I’ is the Self. In this image the dead Shiva represents the
spiritual path and the destruction of the seeking identity. Kali, the Self, stands proudly over its dead
body. This same truth is encapsulated in
the Zen saying, “If you meet the Buddha on the path, slay him.”
How has this final
realization been accomplished? With the
sword of discrimination. The ‘sword of
discrimination’ is an extremely common Vedantic symbol because it represents
the Upanishad’s fundamental view of enlightenment…discrimination. What is this discrimination? It is the ability to separate what is real
from what isn’t. The Self alone is real.
What changes is unreal. Yes, in a
non-dual reality everything is real but during the seeking phase many ephemeral
manifestations of the Self still seem real and it is the duty of the seeker to
reject them and cling to the Self alone.
Realization, enlightenment, happens when the sword of discrimination is
used to lop off the head of the one who is wielding the sword. In other words when one calls off the search
and embraces his or her limitless identity.
How has this
discrimination been accomplished? Kali
is almost always depicted as wearing a necklace of skulls or in this case
bloody severed heads. Skulls represent
death. Death is not a physical statement
in spiritual science. It is a symbol
change…time. So the necklace of skulls
represents the Self as immortal…beyond change.
In this image she wears a necklace of bloody severed heads. The ‘head’ in spiritual iconography
invariably represents thought. What
thoughts have been cut off? All thoughts
of limitation. This means that she is
left with only one thought, ‘I am limitless Awareness’ because you cannot kill
Awareness and the knowledge of oneself as Awareness is not separate from
Awareness itself.
The skirt of severed
hands is another interesting symbol.
Hands represent doing. Most of
our physical activities require hands.
To do, you need a doer. Most
people identify themselves with their accomplishments or roles in life. This identity needs to be removed if one is
to attain full spiritual maturity. This
is accomplished when you realize that you are the Self. The Self is not a doer because it is
non-dual. There is no activity in
Awareness, the Self. How can there be
activity if there is nothing other than it?
This is why enlightenment equals peace…all one’s striving to be more,
better or different cease.
Kali’s halo is a cliché
symbol of illumination. The final
symbol, her uncut hair, represents the Self as the natural state. Cut hair is unnatural. Only humans do it. In spite of considerable research I have been
unable to come up with a reasonable explanation for Kali’s extended
tongue. I’m leaning toward the following
explanation but it is a stretch: the tongue is hidden within the mouth. Enlightenment means that everything is known
and nothing is concealed. Therefore one
is not afraid to show everything that is ‘inside.’
Vishnu
Vishnu is a benign,
intelligent and compassionate deity. He
is the Self in the form of the preserver and represents the principle of light
in the universe. The word ‘vishnu’ means
‘that which pervades everything’ and refers to the Self. In this image, which is perhaps my favorite
spiritual symbol, Vishnu is reclining on the coils of the seven headed cosmic
serpent, Adi Sesha in an infinite ocean.
From his navel a lotus is growing and in the center of the lotus sits
Brahma, the creator of the universe. He
is attended by celestials, Gods and sages.
His wife Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth, is at his feet. In one hand he holds the lotus of
enlightenment and a noose in the other.
The sun and the moon look on. The graphic was scanned from an old poster
and some of it was damaged beyond repair so Laxmi, the noose, the moon and part
of the sun are missing.
Vishnu is
reclining. Reclining, rest, and sleep
are common and appropriate Self symbols.
They are appropriate because the Self is a non-doer. It is always at rest. It is the substrate for the universe and the
source of its creative energies. It is
‘asleep’ i.e. unconcerned by the problems of the world. The Self rests on itself in the form of the
seven headed infinite cosmic serpent.
This simply means that the Self is limitless. The seven heads symbolize the seven cosmic
levels the Vedas speak of: three heaven realms, three hell realms and
earth. The most subtle and important
symbol is the lotus coming from his navel with the four-headed Creator sitting
in it. It is important because it says
that the Self is more than just the creator of the universe. It is the Consciousness because of which
creation is possible. It is uncreated,
unborn, and unmade. The creator, Brahma,
is of a lower order because it is created out of Consciousness. And because the creation is an effect of
which the creator is the cause it is also Consciousness. This is so because any effect is just a
transformation of a pre-existing cause.
The word Brahma means limitless and therefore the creation is limitless. It is limitless because the substrate, the
Self, is limitless. Brahma’s four heads
represent the four cardinal directions, the four elements and the four limbs of
the Subtle Body. This accounts for both
matter and spirit. These two principles
make creation possible. Spirit can’t
create without a substance. And a
substance cannot shape itself because it is inert and insentient. The creation
can only happen in duality. In
Consciousness itself creation is impossible because it is non-dual. The sun and the moon also represent the
dualistic principles that make up the cosmos.
The sun represents Spirit, the creative force and the moon represents
reflected awareness, i.e. the energy/matter that make up the creation.
The lotus symbolizes
enlightenment. Enlightenment is the
knowledge “I am that which pervades everything, limitless Awareness.” The Self is compassion; it sees everyone and
everything as itself. Therefore it is the ‘wielder of the noose.’ The noose symbolizes liberation. Vishnu reaches down into the ocean of samsara
and grants liberation to souls drowning there.
The ‘ocean of samsara’ is the state of mind of samsaris. Samsaris are worldly people, caught up in
their conditioning. Samsara means
whirlpool or ‘circling.’ Conditioning
happens because people do not know they are free, i.e. the Self. They get caught up in it and go round and
round on the ‘wheel of samsara.’
The Gods and sages
looking on mean that both the unseen world of spiritual forces (the gods) and
the world of humans (the sages) depend on the Self for their existence. Finally Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth, worships
at his feet. It means that source of
real wealth is devotion to the Self. On
Vishnu’s forehead is the caste mark of Vaishnavas. It is a symbol of a Vedic sacrifical rite, a
yagna. The white portion represents the
kund, the bricks that contain the sacrificial fire. They symbolize matter. And the red mark in the center represents the
sacrificial fire, the ‘fire of Consciousness.”
The Self is seen as a fire because it gives both heat (love) love and
light (wisdom).
The Story of
Vishu’s Avatara as a Dwarf
A very long time ago a
powerful demon, Mahabali, gained control of the earth, set himself up as its
ruler and instituted a reign of materialism.
He hated religion and promulgated laws banning religious rituals. The gods live from the offerings from
sacrificial fires and because of the ban were beginning to starve. The offerings of the few brave souls who
worshiped in secret were not enough to sustain them so they went to Vishnu who
was reclining on Sesha in the infinite milky ocean and asked him to come down
on earth and destroy the demon. Vishnu,
an ocean of compassion, agreed and took the form of a dwarf sannyassi, a
renunciate.
It so happened that once
“As you know, Sir, we
are mere Gods and have no physical bodies so we don’t want anything for
ourselves but we do have a small request on behalf of this small
sannyassi. We think it would be very
good public relations with the religious community if you were to gift him with
a small plot of land. He’s very tiny and doesn’t need much, just a little
parcel on which to build his hut. If I
am correct you own the whole world and could easily afford such a modest
request.”
The idea appealed to
“You’re right,”
“OK,”
“I
did not misspeak when I said you were generous,” Indra said, barely able to
conceal his contempt.
It
so happens that one of Vishnu’s names is ‘long strider’ owing to the fact that
he pervades the whole creation. There is
no place where he isn’t so he already is where he would be if he were to
attempt to go there.
“Get
on with it Swami.”
“Thank you, so much,”
Vishnu said. “You are indeed a great man.”
With that he took his
first step and claimed the whole material world.
“Wait
a minute,” said
Shiva
Shiva is an immensely
popular deity in
In his upper right hand
he is holding a small drum, a damaru, meant to symbolize the creation of
space. The existence of space makes
vibration possible and this vibration creates the worlds. In the upper left hand he is holding a small
flame. This represents the destruction
of ignorance, the ‘fire of knowledge’ that consumes the fuel of
unknowning. The lower right hand with
only the palm and fingers visible is abaya mudra, the gesture of fearlessness.
The Self is fearless and protects the creation from fear; Shiva’s is a benign
universe. The lower left arm and hand
sloping downward indicates, grace or compassion. For aesthetic reasons I was unable to include
the dwarf under his feet but this is an essential part of the story because it
represents the relationship between the Self and the ego.
Saraswati
Fire is one of the most
pervasive symbols of the Self. During the Vedic period Agni, the fire god, was
the most popular diety. And many thousand years later fire is still an
essential element in religious ritual. Fire is an appropriate symbol because it
gives both light and heat. Light is an obvious Self symbol because it removes
darkness just as Self knowledge removes spiritual ignorance. Heat is a common
symbol of love. The Self is the love that glues the whole creation together causing
each part to work in harmony with the others. Fire also consumes dry wood just
as Self knowledge consumes hardened dry egoic habits. In this graphic the fire
of wisdom is consuming the stone out of which the Goddess is carved. The
Goddess, Saraswati, is sitting in a lotus. The open lotus symbolizes
enlightenment, the realization that one is perfect, i.e. fully developed
already. The lotus is fitting symbol for spiritual awakening because it opens
in daylight and closes at night. Night
is a common symbol of spiritual ignorance.
Her four arms represent her as the Self, limitless awareness, in the
form of the Subtle Body or the human mind.
One limb represents the intellect, another the feelings and emotions,
the third the ego or 'I-sense' and the forth memory. The left hand resting on her lap symbolizes
the receptive negative feminine energy and the right the positive masculine
energy. Together they represent duality. The original icon can be found on a temple at
Gangaikondacholapuram in Tamil Nadu.
Appropriate Self Symbols Light/Vision/Seeing Why do light and vision symbols most accurately represent the Self and Self knowledge? Because the Self is limitless non-dual Awareness. Awareness is the ‘light’ in which what is known is known, the ‘eye of Consciousness.’ It is not physical light but it is similar to physical light because it illumines all objects, including physical light, just as physical light illumines the objects in space. Shankara says, “Realize That to be the Self which illumines the sun, but is not illumined by the sun."
Fire works too because it produces light. Because of this the sun is a common Self symbol. Perception, is ‘seeing.’ Seeing is knowing. Knowing is experiencing. Because the eyes bring knowledge and experience they are appropriate Self symbols. Although the moon illumines things it is not an appropriate Self symbol because it does not generate its own light from within. It borrows its light from the sun. Therefore it is an appropriate symbol for the mind.
Third Eye
We have two eyes for
seeing objects and one, the Self, for seeing reality. What is that ‘eye?’ It is knowledge. Knowledge brings ‘light’ to things. Ignorance of physical objects is taken care
of by the physical eyes. But what kind
of ‘eye’ removes Self ignorance. It
would necessarily be a ‘third’ eye.
Fish Eye
The
prize for the most creative symbol goes to the person who named the famous
Shiva temple in
Problem Symbols
The lack of intellectual rigor
evidenced by modern seekers is appalling.
It is true that owing to the plethora spiritual words one encounters on the
path it often seems easier to give up thinking altogether and become an
advocate of ‘surrender’ or some equally ill-considered belief. But we cannot escape words. Even in the silence of the presence of the
Self they operate, coloring and shaping our quests. As we approach the end of our journeys,
however, the words we cling to or have rejected become more and more important.
It would be fair to say that even
those of us that imagine we have given up concepts actually formulate
enlightenment in terms of action words.
For example: the ego is meant to “become’ or ‘merge into’ the Self; the
individual is supposed ‘experience’ the ‘state of nonduality;’ to ‘finish’ our
work we are enjoined to ‘experience’ the Self; enlightenment should ‘feel’ like
endless bliss; enlightenment is the ‘union’ of the individual and the
total. Formulating enlightenment in
terms of action words and experience reflects our belief in the reality of
duality.
However, if
reality is actually not a duality then action words become a big problem. If our world is a non-duality as scripture
contends then the appropriate words to describe and conceive it would be nouns
and statements about it would be appropriately framed as simple statements of
identity. Let’s examine some words and
see how they might either aid or prevent enlightenment.
Union/Becoming It is the contention of Yoga that enlightenment is a union of the individual with the Divine. What kind of union is it? Supposedly it is an experience in which the subject and the object ‘become’ one. So what is this ‘becoming?’ ‘Becoming’ means that something that was in one form previously subsequently changes into another form. In short, something limited, inadequate and incomplete ‘becomes’ limitless adequate and whole. This is all fine as an idea but it presents a real problem. ‘Becoming’ is experiencing. Experience never stops changing. Therefore there is no such thing as a permanent experience. If enlightenment is an experience and there is no such thing as a permanent experience there is no permanent enlightenment. If there is no such thing as permanent enlightenment why would it be more desirable than any of the many pleasurable experiences that are available to us on a daily basis? Why would we seek it in the first place? If this is a non-dual reality there cannot be two separate selves. If there are not two separate selves how can they ‘become’ one? Yes, it seems like there are two or more selves but what if the mind has played a trick on us and caused us to take what is one as two or many? If this is so then there is no lower self to ‘become’ a higher Self and all attempts to make this happen are ultimately futile. Someone who has ‘become’ the Self through an experience ‘unbecomes’ the Self when the experience runs its course. These temporary Self realizations are useful in so far as they give the experiencer an idea that there is a Self and that it is limitless but if the person believes that enlightenment is the ‘permanent experience of the Self’ he or she will simply develop a craving for Self experience. Is the craving for an epiphany different from any other craving? Merger For a merger to take place two objects are required but if this is a non-dual reality there are not two objects. Therefore trying to merge oneself into something else is pointless. If, however, reality is described in terms of what is, then the search for experience would necessarily become a search for understanding. Understanding means that I don’t have to change myself or my world, I just have to expose myself to a means of knowledge and let it work on me. Knowledge is not something you do. It is something that happens. If this is a non-dual reality but I believe it is a duality then my only problem is lack of understanding. This is why Vedanta formulates the solution to limitation in terms of knowledge. Waking/Sleeping Another metaphor for enlightenment is ‘waking up.’ The problem with this idea is that if ‘waking’ is an activity then whatever wakes up eventually goes back to sleep. Formulating enlightenment in terms of ‘awakening’ does more harm than good. Because of this idea the spiritual world is brimming with frustration. The problem is centered on the word ‘you.’ If you are a changeable karmic entity then you will wake and you will sleep. But if you are unchanging Awareness then there is no question of sleep or waking. You cannot ‘become’ unchanging Awareness because you are unchanging Awareness to begin with. This fact can only be ‘experienced’ as knowledge. State
This is not an action word but it is
a problem word nonetheless. The Self is
often referred to as the forth ‘state’ of Consciousness. Or the thought-free state is said to be
enlightenment. Is the Self a
‘state?’ If a state is subject to change
then the Self is not a state because the Self is unchanging Awareness. Although it is not a verb the world ‘state’
becomes a problem when I try to relate it to myself. Am I a ‘state?’ I am not.
I am the Awareness of any and all states. I, Awareness, am a fact. I can only be known. Or not.
Most Exotic Symbol
The prize for the most exotic, artistic and fascinating spiritual symbol goes to the Kundalini Shakti.
As it is conceived there is a
‘serpent power’ a latent energy ‘coiled’ at the base of the spine. This power must be ‘awakened’ so that it can
begin its journey back to Shiva, back to the Self, the ‘thousand petaled lotus.’ Its journey is long and arduous, fraught with
peril. It needs to pass through several
‘chakras’ and have certain experiences on its way to enlightenment. Once it has ‘pierced all the chakras’ it
leaves the body and ‘merges with Shiva,’ the Self.
This metaphor raises
several questions. Why does a latent
potential ‘energy’ need to journey through and out of the body to mate with
Shiva? How will it be benefited by
this ‘union’ if it is Shiva already?
Remember that if an object exists in our non-dual reality it cannot be
different from non-dual Awareness. Is
this energy conscious? To realize that
it needed to mate it would have to be conscious and then it would have to find
Shiva, pure Consciousness. Even if it
were conscious how could it find Shiva if Shiva were subtler than it? In fact if there is such an energy sleeping
at the base of the spine it seems to sleep in 99.99 percent of the population.
If it awakened on its
own Kundalini yoga would not have evolved.
Kundalini yoga is a lengthy arduous program of physical and mental
practices that are meant to awaken the Kundalini. These practices must work or they would not
have survived for several thousand years.
In fact I practiced this yoga in
Kundalini yoga is
obviously an experiential concept of enlightenment tailor made for doers. Its practices are so difficult and complex
that only one in a million can master them even if one could find a qualified
teacher. And, at the end of the day it
does not get rid of the doer, since any practice requires a doer. On the contrary it builds ego if the practice
is successful or ruins one’s self confidence if it isn’t. It presumes that an epiphany will permanently
solve the problem of limitation…which is patently untrue. It does not take into account that experience
does permanently remove Self ignorance.
There is no need to repeat the arguments why enlightenment is not an
experience.