The Essence of Vedic Culture
A
Special request
to readers -
understanding
this page
and the
previous page
is most crucial to understand the whole of Vedic and its Spiritual
Knowledge.
Let us
summarize, what we have discussed about the core principle of Vedic Culture
to understand about Ego.
We perceive the world through the five
sense organs which are maintained "alive" by the
functioning of the body. However the reality
is that it is not the sense organs that perceive the world, but the
"Mind", is what perceives the world. Mind is the
flow of thoughts and is constantly arising like waves on the sea
shore.
Intellect, a more
subtler aspect constantly stream-lines the thoughts and maintains
coherency and also gives chance to exercise choices. It also pulls
the wandering mind towards the very source (Awareness), it
originates from.
The whole situation
unfortunately slips into a dramatic situation, when one "I" thought
takes leadership over all the other thoughts and ends up controlling
everything in its favor. This "I"ness is called as Aham-Kara or
Ego.
Creation of
Ego, sets in polarity, t
he "I-Ego-Self"
verses the "Unconditional-Awareness-Self". The
I-Ego-Self is the Individual or the
Jeev-atma and the Unconditional-Awareness-Self is the
Param-Atma.
The Ego having taken
control over, uses the body to fully express its "I"ness driving to
eternity. Alas, the body having limited years of functionality fails to
provide the ride for the Ego. Having lost the body, the strong
Electro-Magnetic "I" thought, the Ego, finds another vehicle (body) to
continue to fulfill its past-unfilled desires (Vasanas).
Radio waves are Electro-magnetic and
will be expressed as sound waves by a radio-tuned to that frequency of the
radio waves signal. Similarly the desires (Vasanas) are expressed in a body
tuned to the frequency of the Ego.
Though the body dies, the Ego's
endless death after birth cycle in different bodies continues, like a wheel
(Samsara Chakra) without a beginning and end. When Ego
experiences unfavorable conditions for its survival (sufferings), it will
try its maximum means to establish its sovereignty. This may lead to move
towards the realm of the intellect and may transcend to the field of
"Awareness".
Suffering need not always be the means
to transcend to the Awareness state. Strengthening "intellect" and giving
least importance to "individuality" will be the best means to transcend to
the Awareness state.
Strengthening the path of "Intellect"
to transcend to the Awareness state is the fundamental Vedic approach.
The whole Vedic life style is oriented in this direction.
Everyone with a solid intellect could validate the
findings of Rishi's of Vedic tradition, subjectively and express it
objectively as a proof of what they experience. With Experimentation,
observation and inference, one could see the Truth behind the Vedic
Tradition. They have used
Yoga and Meditation as a technology to
realize this mystery. Using
Ashtanga Yoga, not only one enjoys good
physical and mental health but also one can crack the secret of this cosmic
code.
Before going to the Symbolism of Puranas, we would like to see how
this single theme of transcending to the Awareness state is
ingrained in all walks of Vedic life and knowledge. Important is to
understand what prevents everyone easily accessible to this
awareness state is discussed in the next page.
