Gurugita Discouse Ten

Gurucharanam Saranam

Guru-budhyaatmano Naanyat Satyam Satyam Varaanane!
Tallaabhaarttham Prayatnastu Karthavyascha Maneeshibhih

According to the wisdom of Guru, there is nothing separate from the Soul. This verily is the truth, O beautiful one! Intelligent men should strive for its attainment as it is their duty.

Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru said, ‘What is it called as God? It is an actualization (karma) that evolves out of the interplay of five sheaths (panchakosa) and five senses in synchronization with the solitary Consciousness (jeevatma) and Supreme Consciousnesses (paramatma)’.

Everything is perceived or experienced through our consciousness, the ‘soul’. If there were no consciousness (soul), there would be only blankness. We cannot even know that we exist. That is why it is said that there is nothing separate from the soul. Only in the soul, in that consciousness screen we perceive and experience life and the universe. This existential awareness is the truth and veracity behind spirituality. By knowing our nature as pure consciousness we come to know of its eternal imperishable support, the Supreme Consciousness or God. Our physical bodies are like houses in which inhabits the blissful soul encased in astral layers or zones viz. the Intelligence zone (vijnanamaya kosa), Mind zone (Manomaya kosa), the zone of functional energies (pranamaya kosa) and finally the karmic body made of food (annamayakosa). The microbial soul is constantly throbbing to expand by transcending the limitations of astral encasements in order to find its peace in the unconditioned blissful Consciousness.

Though the Supreme Truth is without name and form, we can have its meaningful cognition through the medium of the Universal Soul, which acts as its qualitative empirical experience (Saguna Brahman). This Universal Soul is verily the Guru Consciousness. Being the first born of the formless Truth, it is known as Aadi Guru – the Primal Guru from whom have emerged both the blue print and the building blocks of the universe. This is the wisdom of the seers of Sanatana Dharma.

According to the astral plan of Adi Guru the Creation is ordained. First the Saptarshis (the seven primary Rishis) were born and through their contemplation 12 constellations, 27 stars and 9 planets also get created. From the interpenetration and interplay of these divine energies, a replica of the soul is created in the waters of the earth with the warmth of the sun and the cool rays of the moon. In the Upanishads the Sun is compared to the soul of man and the moon his mind. We may know that the soul qualities of man are thus reflective of and related to the constellations, stars and planets. Along with the cosmos, creation of other astral substances such as time, space and locations also took place.

The soul requires space around it to breath and to expand, hence the creation of the planetary system, revolving under which through many births, through many life forms, learning and self-evolving, the soul attains dissolution in the Absolute Truth transcending all spiritual planes. This happens under the auspices of Manus (primal human ancestors or spiritual authorities) according to an astral calendar. Navajyoti Sri Karunakara Guru taught us that the guru-disciple bond is the elucidation of this cosmic truth. In his discourse to Parvati, Lord Siva informs that all intelligent people should be orienting life to this divine truth as it is the very meaning of life.

Mukundan