knowledge and wisdom

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

On Fri, 2 May 1997, Gummuluru Murthy wrote:

> On Wed, 23 Apr 1997, Bhuvesh wrote:
>
> >
> > Question: The wise who have reached atman ( it ), must have travelled
> > the same path as we mortals. Unless they were born enlightened, in which
> > case they have no business to exist as mortals here in any case. If so,
> > do they not remember that for many of us mortals here, facing a grim
> > battle of faith, a small sign from them ( a miracle maybe? ) would be
> > enough to fortify us? Having reached atman, surely they must be
> > omnipotent. Why do they then not reveal themselves, atleast for the
> > faithful? Are they sadists? Or are they following a grander design which
> > we fools do not understand?

The essential mystery of this is what is beginningless avidyA, no? The
Atman always exists, but why does it not reveal itself to everybody,
ensuring instant enlightenment for all the billions of human beings?

As Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati Swami once said, enlightened ones are all
around us, only we fail to recognize them. This is because every
little thing about them points to their being enlightened, but we keep
ignoring all the signs and looking for some earth-shattering miracles.
Such persons may not have anything to do with the so-called civilized
human society, and so may be living in some remote forest or hill-top. Or
else, they may be found in the midst of the hustle and bustle of life,
seemingly acting routinely.

> The question is an appropriate one for which my answer below may be
> inadequate. As Shri Anand Hudli says, these are jeevanmuktas. I think
> they were born enlightened because these characteristics cannot be
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> acquired in the middle of life of a jeeva. Our recognition of them
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The SAstras do not support such a position. There are a few like vAmadeva
who were "born enlightened" but even such individuals are described as
having realized brahman in the womb itself. That is to say that from the
time of conception to the time of brahman realization, even vAmadeva was
not called a mukta. As far as the world is concerned, there is a before
and an after. To say that everybody who is considered a jIvanmukta must
have been born enlightened, is to overlook the working of prArabdha karma.
It also does not explain how they are even born.

The above position also assumes that every individual is a distinct jIva.
Fine. If so, ask yourself, "am I the jIva?" If yes, according to
what is said above, you can never be enlightened, and all advaita teaching
is pointless. But then, when you understand "jIvo brahmaiva nA para.h",
you have understood that really you are brahman. For all practical
purposes, such an understanding is a concrete event that makes the jIva a
jIvanmukta. It is not necessary to insist that any jIvanmukta must have
been born so. The brahmAnubhava can happen in the womb, or during
normal human life.

Vidyasankar