Who am I? by Dada Bhagwan (if you liked this book txt) 📕

After this, the Real you, the ‘I’, does nothing. It is ‘Chandulal’ that continues to do everything.

 

(6) WHO WILL DO THE SCIENTIFIC SEPARATION ?

 

 

SCIENTIFIC SEPARATION OF SELF AND NON-SELF

 

What is Atma Gnan? It is the understanding of the inherent qualities of Atma (Purush, Self) and the anatma (prakruti, non-self). The one who knows the qualities of the Self and of the non-self, and has been through the process of separation, is said to have acquired Atma Gnan. When you become aware of the inherent qualities and differences of the Self and the non-self, you have acquired Atma Gnan.

 

It is not possible to attain Atma Gnan on your own. This is because right now, you are living and behaving as prakruti and you are trying to destroy the prakruti while being in it. How can this be possible? You will only be able to scratch the surface, but you will not be able to totally destroy prakruti. For example, if this cloth becomes dirty, you will need soap to remove the dirt. In the process of cleaning, the soap will leave behind a residue. While you remove one kind of residue, another kind will set in. Then you have to use Tinopal (a branded cloth whitener in India) in order to remove the residue from the soap. The Tinopal will also leave its own stain. I am giving you this analogy to help you understand why it is not possible to attain Atma Gnan through one’s own efforts. Unless one receives Atma Gnan, it is not possible to destroy prakruti. It can be weakened, but not destroyed. Once you recognize the attributes of the Self and the non-self, you have the solution. The Gnani Purush can help you know all of the attributes. Only a Gnani Purush can separate the Self from the non-Self for you.

 

For example, this gold ring is a mixture of copper and gold. Who do you think will be able to separate the gold from the copper?

 

Questioner : Only a goldsmith.

 

Dadashri : Yes, a goldsmith can separate the gold and copper because he knows the qualities of both these elements. Similarly, a Gnani Purush knows the qualities of the Self and the non-Self and therefore, can separate the two.

 

The gold and copper in this ring are in the form of a mixture rather than a compound. The goldsmith, therefore, can easily separate the mixture. Similarly, the Self and the non-Self are in a mixture form and not in a compound form, which is why it is possible to extract one from the other. If they were in a compound form, it would not be possible to separate the two. That is why the Gnani Purush is able to separate the two, and one is able to understand the Self.

 

WHAT IS THE GNAN VIDHI ?

 

 

Gnan Vidhi is the Gnani’s special process of separation of the Self and the non-Self.

 

 

Questioner : What is the ‘Gnan Vidhi’?

 

Dadashri : The Gnan Vidhi is the process that separates the Soul (Self) from the body (non-self). It is the separation of the animate from the inanimate.

 

Questioner : This principle is correct, but what is the procedure?

 

Dadashri : There is nothing here to be given. One simply has to sit and repeat what I say, exactly as it is being spoken. [The awareness of “Who am I?” is attained after a two-hour process, of which, the first 48 minutes consists of repeating sentences of bhed vignan (Science of separation), which separate the Self and the non-self. After that, there is a period of an hour during which you will be explained the five aagnas (cardinal principles) with examples to illustrate and clarify. You will be shown how to conduct your life so that you do not charge new karma. And you will then know how to dissipate your past karma smoothly. The awareness that you are pure soul will remain constantly.]

 

NEED A GURU OR A GNANI ?

 

 

Questioner : What should one do if he already has a guru prior to meeting Dada?

 

Dadashri : You can still go to him. However, if you do not wish to go, it is not mandatory. You must respect him. After taking Gnan, some people ask me whether they ought to leave their previous guru. I tell them that they should not, because it was the guru who helped them reach the point at which they are now. It was the guru who helped them live a respectable life. Without a guru there would be no purity in life. You can also tell your guru that you are going to meet a Gnani Purush. Some people even bring their guru to meet me. The guru too, wants Moksha (liberation). Without a guru you cannot get the knowledge of the worldly life and even the knowledge of moksha cannot be attained without a guru. The guru is needed for the worldly life and the Gnani Purush is needed for moksha.

 

(7) WHAT IS THE NATURE OF MOKSHA (TOTAL LIBERATION) ?

 

 

THE ONLY GOAL WORTH HAVING

 

 

Questioner : What goal must a human being have?

 

Dadashri : Liberation should be the only goal. You do want liberation don’t you? For how much longer do you want to keep on wandering aimlessly? You have done just this for infinite lives. You have not left any place to wander. You have wandered aimlessly between different gatis: janwar gati (animal kingdom), manushya gati (human form) and devagati (celestial form).

 

Why did you have to suffer such endless wanderings? Because you have not known your true identity; you have not known the answer to, “Who Am I?” Should you not know your Real Self? Despite your extensive wanderings of countless lives, you do not even know who you really are. Is making money your only goal in life? Should you not be making a little attempt toward liberation?

 

Questioner : Yes, an effort should be made.

 

Dadashri : Is there not a need then to become independent? How long can you be in such bondage?

 

Questioner : I believe it is not necessary to become independent but rather to understand the need for becoming independent.

 

Dadashri : Yes, that understanding is necessary. It is enough to understand it just once. Even if you cannot become independent, at least there is a need to understand it, right? Independence will come later on but for the time being the understanding is enough.

 

NO EFFORT REQUIRED IN SELF-REALIZATION

 

 

Moksha means to come to your Real nature. The worldly life means to go away from your Real nature. Which one is the easier of the two? To come to your Real Self is not difficult, but to live the worldly life as a relative self, (i.e., to go away from your Real Self), is always difficult. Moksha is easier than preparing khichdee (A Gujarati dish made of rice and lentils). To prepare khichdee, you need many ingredients, such as, rice, lentils, spices, vegetables, water, a pan, fuel, a stove etc. Only then, will you succeed in making khichdee. Moksha on the other hand, is easier thankhichdee. But you do need to find a Gnani Purush, who can bestow moksha upon you. Have you not gone through endless reincarnations?

(8) WHAT IS ‘AKRAM PATH’ ?

MOKSHA IS EFFORTLESS

 

 

I am telling you to come and get your moksha from me. People are still skeptical. “How can anybody give us moksha without any effort on our part?” they ask. Very well then, go ahead and try it with your own efforts. With effort you will only find worthless things. Nobody has ever attained moksha through effort.

 

Questioner : Is it possible to give or take moksha?

 

Dadashri : Moksha is not something you give or take. But you do need a nimit (Gnani is your nimit, i.e. he becomes instrumental in the process of your acquiring Moksha). Moksha is naimittic (acquired through an ‘instrument’). Your meeting me is also a naimittic process. In reality, there is no giver and there is no taker of Moksha. What is the definition of a ‘giver’? If you give something that belongs to you, then you are called a ‘giver’. When you give something to someone, you are actually relinquishing its possession. Moksha, however, is your birthright. I am just instrumental in making you aware of your ‘Real Self’ through Gnan. I am merely an instrument. I cannot give you something that is already yours. I am not the giver and you are not the taker.

 

MOKSHA MEANS ETERNAL BLISS

 

 

Questioner : What is the point of acquiring moksha?

 

Dadashri : Some people tell me that they do not want moksha. I would tell them that it is not a necessity for them to want moksha. But do they at least want happiness?

 

People do not understand what moksha really is. They just use the word ‘moksha.’ They are under the impression that moksha has a particular location and once they reach there, they will enjoy moksha. But it is not like that.

 

TWO STAGES OF MOKSHA

 

Questioner : Ordinarily by ‘moksha’, we mean release or freedom from the cycles of birth and death.

 

Dadashri : Yes it is true, but that is the final stage of liberation. It is the secondary stage. The first stage of moksha is where you experience a sense of neutrality towards problems and miseries. In the first stage of moksha, one experiences indifference towards any worldly unhappiness. Even in worldly unhappiness, one remains unaffected. In the midst of oopadhi (suffering imposed upon you by others or external factors) you experiencesamadhi (to be free from suffering and to experience the state of one’s own bliss). That is the first stage of moksha. The second stage of moksha, permanent moksha, is attained after death. The first stage of moksha should be attained here and now. I experience this first stage of moksha all the time. Moksha should be such that even while one lives amongst the worldly things, they do not affect him. That is the moksha one must strive for. There is no bondage. This stage of moksha is possible through Akram Vignan.

 

EXPERIENCING MOKSHA IN DAILY LIVING

 

 

Questioner : Is such freedom or moksha experienced while one is living (jeevanmukti) or is it the freedom that comes after death?

 

Dadashri : What is the point of having freedom after you are dead? This is how people become conned into promises of moksha after death and become trapped. Of what use is a pending moksha to you in this life? You need to be able to experience or get a taste of it right here and now. Otherwise, how can one be sure whether there is such a thing as moksha? Moksha after death is like borrowed moksha. One cannot depend upon things that are borrowed. You need to have the moksha in your hands, like ready cash. You should be able to experience this moksha while you are alive, just as King Janak experienced living moksha in his lifetime. Have you heard of this?

 

Questioner : I have heard that.

 

WHO ACHIEVES MOKSHA ?

 

 

Questioner : So in reality, who is it that attains moksha?

 

Dadashri : Only the ego is released through moksha. The one who is bound is the one that attains moksha. It is the one who suffers, that attains moksha. Atma itself is the state of moksha.

 

The one that is bound and the one that suffers from being bound