The Hindu : Miscellaneous / Religion : Ignorance, root of bondage

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Thursday, Jul 15, 2004

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous - Religion

Ignorance, root of bondage

CHENNAI, JULY 15 . Man's bondage, which results in rebirths, is due to ignorance of his true spiritual nature. He wrongly identifies with the body-mind-intellect and hence the afflictions and changes that happen to these faculties become the root of his sorrows. According to Vedanta, the Reality is that which does not undergo any change and so worldly life is said to be unreal because it is transient in nature. Due to ignorance the non-dual nature of the Reality is not perceived, as only the plurality is evident to human perception and experience.

In his discourse on the Vivekachudami of Adi Sankara, Swami Mitrananda said worldly bondage was destroyed when knowledge illumined the nature of the Reality. There are three aspects to this process, which can be understood with the oft-quoted analogy of the rope-snake illusion. Knowledge removes this delusion when the rope is seen as it is; then there is destruction of the illusive perception of the snake in the rope and finally the fear of the snake also vanishes. Similarly, when the true nature of the Self (Atman) is known bondage is destroyed and also the sorrows caused by ignorance.

The unreal nature of everything other than the Self can be grasped with the example of heated iron appearing like fire. So also, in one's consciousness the body-mind- intellect appears as the threefold subject, object and the process of knowing, which are subject to changes. But, the Self is unborn and does not undergo any modification or destruction and hence it is real. Sankara describes its nature, "The Reality is eternal, non-dual, unlimited consciousness, ever of the same form, the witness of the intelligence (different from the gross and the subtle), the meaning indicated by the word "I", the inmost Self, ever blissful."

The spiritual practice of meditation involves three steps: first there is discrimination between the real and the unreal; then the wise aspirant withdraws from the unreal through detachment, and finally, identification with the Self. These must happen in the light of one's experience and should not remain at the level of intellectual understanding. Insight into the nature of the Self happens automatically when the seeker is established in meditation, which is known as Samadhi (union). What is the benefit of Self-realisation? Ignorance is destroyed and there is no desire. When there is no desire for sensory gratification, Karma also drops off and the person remains established in the bliss of the Self.

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