In quest of eternal peace
Throughout the history of our race, the quest for knowing the inner self has been
persistent. Each generation has asked the same questions. The terminology may have differed and the language may vary, but the desire to know has remained the same.
Intuitively, we feel there is something more, something other than what we perceive as reality. Our true pursuit is happiness — that is what we yearn for. We have tried to find answers in the colossal world of objects and each time we are disappointed we turn inwards, to seek this elusive peace and happiness.
This turning within, this search for the truth of one’s being is the practice of meditation. The firm and unshakeable abidance in
that reality is the state of meditation.
Nowadays “meditation” has become the buzzword in urban discussions about life and stress, almost as an extension of the gym routine. It’s not understood that meditation is the effortless abidance in the awareness of one’s true nature. From the point of view of a seeker who perceives duality and considers the world to be real, meditation is a process. Through scriptural studies the seeker gains the objective knowledge that the self is pure consciousness.
Yet, despite such an intellectual appreciation of the truth, the mind tends to revel in the world of sense objects. To turn the wandering mind towards the self is a slow process through which impressions in the form of likes and dislikes are discarded, and purity becomes the predominant quality of the quietened mind. This purified mind is then available to contemplate on the self.
The key to eternal happiness is in understanding the nature of the self. The self is recognised as that which is not born, neither does it decay nor does it die; it is devoid of all notions of doing or enjoying. Once this is understood, all ignorance of the self ends.
So, how can we gain this self-knowledge? The first step is to purify the mind and make it single-pointed. This can be accomplished by following the path of selfless action (karma yoga).
With a quietened mind we are equipped to take the second step, towards gaining knowledge. Imbued with a feeling of humility, faith and surrender at the feet of the teacher, a study of the scriptures is undertaken. By listening to the scriptures (sravanam), studying and contemplating on them (mananam), the knowledge to end all delusion can be gained.
But merely gaining this knowledge is not enough. One has to be firmly established in it. The means of becoming firmly established in this knowledge or the experience of the self is meditation (nididhyasanam). Once established in this state, says Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita, even mountain-like sorrows can cause no disturbance.
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