[Advaita-l] Bhagavan Ramana and the pain of cancer

[V Subrahmanian]

On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 8:16 PM, Anbu sivam2 <anbesivam2 at gmail.com> wrote:

> [ Now you have said what I have said above.  The 'attachment' to the body
> will go; not the awareness of the body as you said a little above]
>
> You mean there is an awareness of 'my' body?!
>
> A jeevan muktha has awareness alright and certainly cannot be without.  But
> such awareness is not the kind that you and I have of the body as one's own
> self.  It is illogical if he had it.  Vishyaartham is impossible if there
> is
> no logic in it.  Illogical contentions are in the realm of the faith.
>
>
> Namaste.

A jeevan mukta is not always in samadhi, even if he has practiced it
before.  He will have to be in contact with the world.  The Panchadashi
says:

Whenever the Jnani has to do loukika vyavahara like 'I shall come for food
in just five minutes', 'I have a head ache', etc. he will identify himself
with the body, mind.  Whenever there is the occasion to discuss, teach
Vedanta or himself goes into deep vichara or contemplation on the Atma, he
will fully identify with the Atman.  This way he will have the felicity to
shift his identification, as he wishes, between the body-mind and the
Atman.  This shifting, toggling, to and fro will not affect his Jnanam.
There are specific verses for this in the Panchadashi, the reference for
which are not immediately available.  If someone gives them, fine.  Here is
another verse in the Panchadashi itself that implicitly states this theme:

तदित्थं तत्त्वविज्ञाने साधनानुपमर्दनात् ।
ज्ञानिना चरितुं शक्यं सम्यग्राज्यादिलौकिकम्  ॥ 9.114 ||

//Therefore as knowledge of truth does not destroy the means, such as the
mind and so forth, a man of realisation is able to do worldly activities
such as ruling a country.//

This is perfectly logical; any position other than this is alone illogical
and not acceptable to Vedanta.

Here is another verse that is very instructive, coming from the GREAT
Advaitin Vidyaranya:

मनो वाक्काय तद्वाह्य पदार्थाः साधनानि तान् ।
तत्त्ववित् नोपमर्द्नाति व्यवहारोऽस्य नो कुतः ॥ 9.90 ||

[To perform activities, the world need not be thought real nor Self as
insentient matter. To do so the right means only are necessary.]

90. These means are the mind, the speech, body and external objects. They
are NOT DESTROYED BY THE JNANI; they do not disappear on enlightenment. So
why can’t he engage himself in worldly affairs ?

This should clear all doubts about this topic.

Om Tat Sat