Actual Freedom – The Actual Freedom Mailing List Correspondence

September 12 1999: Re: Adhyatma and Atma (Atman).

RESPONDENT: Vineeto, good to receive your reply (...) This topic of actualism versus spiritualism is becoming more and more important for me. I remember, in the very beginning you warned me that unless I understand this difference, it will be useless to proceed. At that time I brushed aside your advice, thinking that it was not important as long as I experiment with the method. Now, I realise that it is important to settle this issue before any other thing. To be honest, I consider, actualism as another spiritual path which: 1. terms God/Existence/Nature/That as ‘actual physical world’, and doesn’t use capital letters to denote it In my opinion some other paths also point towards the same ‘actual physical world’ by different names; 2. terms Satori as peak consciousness experience; 3.has its Guru in form of Richard, whose words are taken as final and indisputable; 4.claims that it is the only true path ( like most other paths also claim); 5.maintains that ‘I’ is the main problem in realising its goal. In my opinion many other paths also maintain that. Of course, there are certain differences that it doesn’t believe in re-incarnation and maintain that the death of the body is the final end. But then there are always differences of approaches among different paths. Being brought up in a liberal Hindu culture, I deeply believe that all paths are right and all lead to the same goal. (...) I think it is important to be honest, so that I can start from where I am. I think there is some confusion in my usage of the term spiritualism. In my mother tongue, the corresponding word is called ‘adhyatma’ which literally means coming to yourself. ‘Atma’ in adhyatma doesn’t mean soul or spirit , it means ‘I’. So for me when I am searching for who/what am I, it is adhyatma. And it is this search which brought me to actual freedom. Don’t you think actualism is also focussed on realising the true I and eliminating ‘I’. I understand that in actualism, the true I is realised as this physical body and nothing else. P.S.: Richard, I am not replying to your mail separately, because I think I answered in the above to your question. ‘So, can you now start to ‘differentiate between spiritualism versus actualism’?’

Editorial note: A search of the Internet reveals that the statement [quote] ‘Atma’ in adhyatma doesn’t mean soul or spirit’ [endquote] is incorrect. Vis.:

Atma: (Sanskrit): The Universal Spirit, the divine monad, ‘the seventh Principle,’ so called, in the exoteric ‘septenary’ classification of man. The Supreme Soul. (www.spiritweb.org/cgi/search-db3.cgi/path=Glossary?index=863).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atma: (also known as ‘Awareness’): It is this awareness that is responsible for the I consciousness in all beings, which is called ‘Aham’. When this Aham identifies itself with the body, it becomes ‘Ahamkara’. This is the false ‘I’, and not the real I. What hides the Atma always, is the mind ... the mind, which is the offspring of the Atma, hides the Atma itself. As long as the mind is there, man cannot hope to understand anything about the Self, not to speak of realizing and experiencing the bliss of the Self. That state, in which one is established in the Self at all times and under all circumstances, is called ‘Sakshatkara’ (Self realization). The first sound that emanated from the Self is ‘I’. The entire Creation began only after the emanation of this ‘I’ sound. If there is no ‘I’, there is no Creation. The terms ‘I’, Brahma, Atma or Self are all synonymous. The ‘I’ minus mind is the Atma or the Self in its pristine purity. The ‘I’ associated with the mind is the false self or Mithyatma. There is only one Atma or Self and that is the ‘I’ ... It is important to recognize that as long as the mind is there, desires will not leave you. As long as you have desires, the false notion of ‘I’ and ‘Mine’ will not leave you. As long as the feeling of ‘I’ and ‘Mine’ is there, Ahamkara (your wrong identification with the body) will not leave you. As long as Ahamkara does not leave you, Ajnana (ignorance) will not leave you. In effect, it means that there is no way other than the annihilation of the mind to attain Atma-Jnana (Knowledge of the Self or Atma) darshan (‘Vision of the Self, or Atmananda) Bliss of the Self, whatever you may choose to call it. (www.hindusamajtemple.org/ht/aatma.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atma: (The Eternal Witness Within): In the Vedantic knowledge, the eternal witness within every living being is called the ‘Atma’. The word ‘Atma’ means light or effulgence. The Atma is the very core of each individual which registers all feelings, thoughts, consciousness, and awareness. Western science has taught us that our living forms or bodies have evolved from simple one celled organisms into the complex organization of the human body as it exists today. Inherent in this view is that our thoughts and feelings arise as illusions from the electrical nerve activity in the brain. But the sage knows the body to be secondary and dependent on the primary spirit within. Without the spiritual Atma, the perceiver of all thoughts, feelings and sensations; the organically living form would fall down senseless in an instant. The spiritual entity is the cohesive force behind the physical organization and once the Atma withdraws from the body, disintegration begins immediately.

The Upanishads are that section of the Vedas which deal with the Higher Wisdom. The name Upanishads means steadfast study of the means of attaining to the Ultimate Reality. There are in all 108 Upanishads of which 10 have gained popularity through the commentaries by Shankara, the great teacher of the East:

1. The Katha Upanishad deals specifically with the subject of the Atma. ‘To very few is it given to hear about the Atma; Many more who hear of the Atma, do not understand; Wonderful is the person who speaks of it; Intelligent is the person who learns of it; Most blessed is he who hears it from a knowing teacher and understands it’. The Katha Upanishad teaches that there are two distinctly different types of experiences and urges. The two paths may be called the pleasant and the good. The first path binds, the second releases. Choosing the good leads to salvation. Choosing the pleasurable leads to incarceration. If you pursue only the path of pleasure you leave the path of realization of the highest goal of man far behind. Choosing the path of good requires exercising the refined intellect (the power of discrimination). The Atma is pure unwavering awareness. It is agitation-less; it is Consciousness, infinite and full. Our innermost essence is Atma. We are not the body, mind or senses. We are not the individual with name and form. The Atma is not the knower, the known, or even knowledge. Discovering this is the supreme-most vision. Teaching this is the supreme-most instruction. The instructor is Brahman; the instruction is Brahman. the instructed is also Brahman. The Atma is the eternal unchanging witness within. This mystery cannot be understood through logic. It must be experienced by diverting the mind from it’s natural habitat, the objective world until it becomes a placid lake, reflecting the reality of the effulgent Atma. By purifying the Buddhic principle of higher mind, the illusion of the object universe dissolves and the vision of Atma is glimpsed.

2. The Vedas deal with the science of the spirit. They contain the knowledge and procedures necessary to liberate oneself from bondage and blindness ... The Vedic teachings are explained and elaborated in the Upanishads, Sastras, and the Puranas ... they teach the ultimate truth that ‘all this is Brahman’ (the eternal transcendent God who permeates all and is given various names by different religions). The individual arises as a wave on the ocean and eventually merges back into the ocean of Brahman. The mergence is an ecstatic reunion after a prolonged journey of isolation through space, time and form. Sages who have attained to this state of ultimate knowledge of God have proclaimed that everything in this world and the entire universe is nothing but this Brahman who shines with the effulgence of a billion suns. This is the highest state that can be achieved and is referred to as Advaita (‘A’: not; ‘Dvaita’: two). In the Advaitic state of ultimate realization, Brahman or God is experienced as the One without a second. In this state of ecstatic union with Brahman the appearance of duality, of forms, people, animals, objects that were previously seen to exist separately in this world as what we call objective reality dissolve into the single sight of the entity of Brahman which is eternal and formless and yet contains all form within it. This transcendent state of ultimate union is referred to in the powerful mantras Aham Brahmasmi (I am Brahman) and Soham (He am I). This state of mergence with the Absolute is referred to by many terms in various religions. It is often called Nirvana in the West, Kensho or Satori in Zen Buddhism, the Void or at-one-ment in Tibetan Buddhism; also variously Enlightenment, Self realization, and in the East – Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Christ referred to it in his statement ‘The Father and I are one’ as he attained to this pinnacle of realization towards the end of his earthly career.

3. Vedanta is that body of thought which contains the wisdom of the Vedas. It deals with this science of self realization by which the individual and temporary wave of consciousness can merge into the eternal ocean of Sat-Chit-Ananda (Existence, Knowledge, Bliss) which is Brahman or the highest God. This state is attained only through sacrifice, the transcending of likes and dislikes, desires and prejudices of the ego and the state of individuality. One who has attained this state sees all as inherently divine and therefore strives to serve all others as repositories of that same Godhead.

4. The Bhagavad Gita (literally the song of God), is the recording of a conversation between Krishna (a descent of the Godhead on earth) and Arjuna. It is one of the most popular works of literature in the East. Although small in volume, it has within it all the essence of the Vedas. The Bhagavad Gita contains one of the most potent and lucid explanations of this inner essence referred to as the Atma: ‘Know this Atman, unborn, undying; Never ceasing, never beginning; Deathless, birthless, unchanging forever; How can it die the death of the body? Worn out garments are shed by the body; Worn out bodies are shed by the Atma; New bodies are donned like garments; Not wounded by weapons nor burned by fire; Not dried by the wind not wetted by water; Such is the Atman; He who dwells within all living bodies remains forever indestructible; Therefore never mourn for anyone; You must be free from the pairs of opposites; Poise you mind in tranquillity; Be established in the consciousness of the Atman always; You must not desire for the fruits of your work; Perform every action with your heart fixed on the Supreme Lord; Be even tempered in success and failure; Unite the heart with Brahman, and then act; That is the secret of non attachment’. (www.cosmicharmony.com/Wi/WImain.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: the self, supreme soul. (www.ashram.com/glossary_of_terms.htm#sectA).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: The individual self or the soul in Brahmanic thought. (www.tunglinkok.ca/9609/sources/glossa-e.htm#a).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: the Self; the Spirit; the original and essential nature of our existence; the spiritual being above the mind. In its nature the Atman is transcendent or universal (Paramatma, Atma); when it individualises and becomes a central being, it is then the Jivatman. (www.iksc.org/glossary.html#a).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: (Sanskrit): the self, supreme soul. (www.spiritweb.org/cgi/search-db3.cgi/path=Glossary?index=174).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: one of the most basic concepts in Hindu philosophy, describing that eternal core of the personality that survives after death and that transmigrates to a new life or is released from the bonds of existence. (www.eb.com/bol/search?query=atman&hits=10&skip=0&text=0).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Doctrine of Atman-Brahman: Running through the great complex of beliefs and ritual practices that constitute Hinduism is the conviction that the soul or self (atman) is subject to samsara – i.e., the transmigration through many forms of incarnation. Hindus believe in an uncreated, eternal, infinite, transcendent, and all-embracing principle, which, ‘comprising in itself being and non-being,’ is the sole reality, the ultimate cause and foundation, source, and goal of all existence. This ultimate reality is called Brahman. As the All, Brahman causes the universe and all beings to emanate from itself ... Brahman is in all things and is the Self (atman) of all living beings ... this fundamental belief in and the essentially religious search for ultimate reality have continued almost unaltered for more than thirty centuries and has been the central focus of India’s spiritual life. (www.eb.com/bol/search?query=atman&hits=10&skip=0&text=0).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Atman: (Sanskrit): literally, breath, soul; akin to Old English ‘thm’: breath; the innermost essence of each individual; the supreme universal self (Brahma) the ultimate ground of all being in Hinduism. (www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=brahma).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

What is the Atma?: The word for soul in Sanskrit is Atma. The word ‘Atma’ basically translates to mean the spark of spiritual light within our hearts which is the manifestation of the over-soul or the Supreme Being. From the ancient history of saints and sages of India, comes a wealthy legacy of universal spiritual knowledge which has remained untouched by the horde of invaders that swept over Her great land in search of worldly riches and domination. The sages of old were not religious men, rather spiritual seekers of truth. From their realizations have come the most enlighten spiritual knowledge men have ever discovered. The purpose and meaning of life. The soul, the sages discovered, is a spark of the supreme light of the Creator. Being that God doesn’t belong to any religion, the individual soul which a spark of Him within the heart, belongs to no religion either.

The soul or atma is pure spiritual presence which is beyond all categories of claim. It is you, it is me, it is everyone. This is why the sages of old said: ‘we are all essentially God, for the spark of Him within us, is He’. The atma is the internal, eternal you. It lies in the deep recesses of one’s heart and is the source of all true love, peace, joy, and happiness. Your soul, my soul, everyone’s soul is the heart of hearts of every human. The atma is the inner radiance of self-effulgent light that shines as love and offers over the inner calm that the individual and the world call peace. The atma is universal. It reflects from within but does not belong to any specific race, colour, creed, gender or religion it merely lights them up. Externally we may appear physically dissimilar with human differences but the light of the soul is exactly the same within all.

The atma is beyond all philosophy and politics. It truly surpasses words of distinction, so it cannot be described or ascribed to anyone or anything in particular, except that it can be said to be the very seat of eternal joy, because its very nature is perennial love. The atma is also said to be the original source of self-confidence, without which, nothing can be accomplished.

The atma is the seat of truth and honesty these do not change with the flux of time or the shift with circumstances, nor sway with the formation of any particular situation all of which move the world to experience the vagaries of the various ages. The soul is certainly an unchanging principle this is why it is described as eternal. It has as its natural attribute, a wisdom and discrimination at the highest human level which makes it the treasure of treasures to realize. The light of the soul is none other than the spark of the Creator that ember of universal light which lies in the depth of everyone’s human heart.

Again, where does the spark of the soul lie? It lies within the hearts of all men, women and children, as well as the unborn child. All are entitled to search and discover it. All are entitled to someday realize it. And what is the soul? The soul is one’s supernal reality – the eternal spark of the atma, within. (www.atmavidya.com/atma.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: a Sanskrit word meaning ‘relating’ (adhy) to the ‘self’ (atma). It is defined by Shankara in his commentary on Gita VIII. 3 as: ‘Brahman the supreme Self, immortal universal consciousness, seemingly related to each individual body/mind complex manifesting as the Self of the Lord omniscient and omnipotent, and ultimately Brahman-without-attributions, Supreme Self in its own glory’. Adhyatma yoga is a method of realizing Brahman, not knowing by the mind, but knowing by being. It is an expansion of consciousness from individuality to the absolute, not merely an intellectually or emotionally satisfying background idea. (www.adhyatma-teachings.org.uk/about.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma Yoga: (Hinduism, Yoga): Identification with body and mind are overcome through knowledge and realization of the Self. Knowledge that man, as atman, is absolute consciousness and is therefore identical with Brahman, gives rise to the super-conscious state of adhyatma prasada and the yogi becomes a jivanmukta. (www.uia.org/uiademo/hum/h3112.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma Prasada: (Hinduism): A super-conscious state achieved through practice of adhyatma yoga, when the yogi becomes a jivanmukta. (www.uia.org/uiademo/hum/m4435.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatmika: (Hinduism): An awareness of the Atman as supreme self, this is experienced by the individual as he takes the path from mortality to immortality. The expression is also used to describe the path itself. (www.uia.org/uiademo/hum/m3988.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: ‘In the Srimad Bhagavad Gita (8. 3), God described ‘svabhava’ as ‘adhyatma’. Adhyatma is imperceptible by our senses’. (posted by Dhruba Chakravarti dchakrav@netserv.unmc.edu ). (www.hindunet.org/srh_home/1996_6/msg00006.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

‘What is Adhyatma’: The Imperishable is Brahman. The qualities (swabhava) of Brahman and its dwelling in each individual body is called ‘Adhyatma’. Adhyatma is one’s own self and is also known as Jiva, Soul. (www.hal-pc.org/~ganesh/chap08.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Bhagavad Gita: [8.3]: The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: The indestructible, transcendental living entity is called Brahman, and his eternal nature is called adhyatma, the self. (http://members.tripod.com/yogi15/bg8.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Bhagavad Gita: [8.3]: Adhyatma is the name of my being manifesting as the Individual Self. (www.theosociety.org/pasadena/gita/bg8.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Krishna: ‘The Brahman is the supreme Being, the indestructible. Its manifestation as an individual self is called the Adhyatma’. (www.wsu.edu:8001/~dee/ANCINDIA/GITA8.HTM).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Haridasas mystical experience was of various kinds: Svanubhava, Anubhava, Atmanubhava, Brhasakshtkara and Aparoksha Gnana. While the Vachanakaras called mystic experience as Anubhava, Haridasas called it Aparokshgnana. Christian and Muslim as well Vaishnava and Saiva mystics have certified to mystic experience Adhyatma Anubhava, as the ultimate criterion of truth, and the constituents of this experience being the acceptance of only one God who is omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent; and the final spiritual aim and of spiritual yearning, being absorption in this Sattva and attainment of Paramananda. (www.dvaita.org/haridasa/overview/hist.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma-Vidya: While the Veda Samhitas are the recognised primary source of divine inspiration, their hidden intention, purported message, is supposed to be prominently revealed in the Upanishads. The Vedas are said to be capable of a variety of interpretation, a knowledge of the Adhidaiva or the transcendent divinity, Adhibhuta or the created universe. Adhyatma or the deepest subjective consciousness, Adhiyajna or the field of action and sacrifice, and Adhidharma or the function of law and order. Though, in a restricted sense, the Adhyatma, in this mentioned classification, may appear as an insight into the perceiving and knowing subject as distinguished from its involvements in the objective universe and the transcendent divinity, thus categorising the Upanishads as records of inward revelations of the ancient sages, yet, the Upanishads constitute Adhyatma-Vidya or knowledge of the pure self in a wider sense, inasmuch as the self can be envisaged in the different degrees of its connotation and the many levels of its expression. God above, the universe outside, the society of persons and things in the midst of whom one’s own individuality may be included, are all, in the final analysis, comprehended within the status of the Absolute Self, so that, in its broad outlook the Upanishads may be considered as a groundwork in whose light may be studied every branch of knowledge and learning. (www.rsl.ukans.edu/~pkanagar/divine/bookdes.htm).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Brahman is the Reality, and is often identified with Purusha. The condition when Brahman is potent with the possibility of a future creation is called the Avyakrita or Unmanifest, known also as Ishvara in the later Vedanta. In the Sankhya terminology, this condition is the Prakriti of all things. When the Cosmic Will is fully projected, it is Hiranyagarbha, or in Sankhya parlance, Mahat. Hiranyagarbha or the Cosmic Intellect, when fully manifest as the Cosmos, becomes Virat. Now the subsequent process of creation is the beginning of Samsara or individualisation by separation. The universal Virat is conceived as Adhyatma, Adhibhuta and Adhidaiva, when the diversified forms appear as divisions therein. (www.geocities.com/~sriswamiji/hist_2.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma: Chapter 10. The Opulence of the Absolute; Text 32: sarganam adir antas ca; madhyam caivaham Arjuna; adhyatma-vidya vidyanam; vadah pravadatam aham. (sarganam – of all creations; adih – beginning; antah – end; ca – and; madhyam – middle; ca – also; eva – certainly; aham – I am; arjuna – O Arjuna; adhyatma-vidya – spiritual knowledge; vidyanam – of all education; vadah – natural conclusion; pravadatam – of arguments; aham – I am): ‘Of all creations I am the beginning and the end and also the middle, O Arjuna. Of all sciences I am the spiritual science of the self, and among logicians I am the conclusive truth’.

Among created manifestations, the total material elements are first created by Maha-Visnu and are annihilated by Lord Siva. Brahma is the secondary creator. All these created elements are different incarnations of the material qualities of the Supreme Lord; therefore He is the beginning, the middle and the end of all creation. Regarding the spiritual science of the self, there are many literatures, such as the four Vedas, the Vedanta-sutra and the Puranas, the Srimad Bhagavatam and the Gita. These are all representatives of Krishna. Among logicians there are different stages of argument. The presentation of evidence is called japa. The attempt to defeat one another is called vitanda, and the final conclusion is called vada. The conclusive truth, the end of all reasoning processes, is Krishna. (www.asitis.com/10/32.html).

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Adhyatma Yoga:

1. This world has no real, independent existence. It appears to exist, because Brahman or the Absolute exists for ever.

2. There is no body before its birth; there is no body after its death. Think and feel that which you see now does not really exist. That which does not exist in the beginning and end does not really exist in the middle also.

3. Sensual pleasure is the womb of pain. The cause for pain is absence of pleasure. Sensual pleasure is imaginary, illusory, fleeting and tantalising. Abandon sensual pleasure and rejoice in the Eternal Bliss of Atman.

<SNIP>

7. When a desire is not gratified, anger manifests itself. Anger is a form of desire only. Slay this anger through Vichara, discrimination, patience, love, meditation, identification with the ever-serene Atman.

8. Subdue the lower self by the Higher Self. Annihilate all desires. Slay egoism. Destroy all attachments. Meditate and rest peacefully in your own Innermost Atman, which is Existence, Consciousness and Bliss Absolute.

9. If you want to attain immortality, go beyond the pairs of opposites.

<SNIP>

14. Stand up. Have mastery over the senses. Be devoted to Atman. Destroy all doubts through Satsanga, study, enquiry, meditation and wisdom.

<SNIP>

17. Constantly do your duty without attachment. Your heart will be purified. You will attain immortal bliss.

18. Identify yourself with the Actionless Atman, the Silent Witness and thus free yourself from the bondage of action.

<SNIP>

23. Knowledge of Atman burns all actions. There is no purifier in this world like Brahma-Jnana.

24. Seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, moving, speaking, grasping, etc., are actions of the senses. Atman is the silent witness. Thou art really the Atman or the Witness, Sakshi. Never forget this.

25. Behold only the One Atman or the Self in all beings – in the ants, dogs, cows, horses, elephants and outcastes. This is equal vision or Sama Drishti.

<SNIP>

31. Have faith in your own Self, in the existence of Brahman, in the teachings of your Preceptor, in the sacred Scriptures. Then alone can you attain Self-realisation.

<SNIP>

35. Now you will behold the One Atman in all beings and all beings in the Atman.

36. Withdraw yourself. Annihilate all attachments and external sense-contacts. Be in tune with the Infinite. Find joy in your own Atman. You will realise Immortal, Undecaying Bliss.

<SNIP>

39. Rejoice in the Atman. Be satisfied in the Atman. Be contented in the Atman. Rest in Atman. Root yourself in Atman. All your desires will be gratified. Your heart will be filled with the Self.

<SNIP>

52. No one can slay or destroy this Atman or soul because It is extremely subtle, formless. It is Spirit, not matter.

<SNIP>

58. Think of Brahman. Meditate on Brahman. Be devoted to Brahman. Get merged in Brahman. Get established in Brahman, This is Brahma-Abhyasa or Jnana-Abhyasa, or Vedantic Nididhyasana or Ahamgraha Upasana. (www.rsl.ukans.edu/~pkanagar/divine/download/amrita.htm#_VPID_9).