| Shankaracharya, the great philosopher and | | | | with soul and soul with body consciousness, mind |
| preacher born in Kerala in the second half of 7th | | | | consciousness and sense-organ consciousness. |
| century BC. Born in Kerala, he forsook worldly | | | | Now Let us consider this example, albeit it seems |
| pleasures in very young age and got initiated in | | | | deviation slightly. |
| the lineage of non-dualist recluses. | | | | A rope has fell on the ground and I confuse it for |
| The scholars of his time had been twisting the | | | | a snake. I get scared. My heart beat rises to very |
| ancient scriptures to adjust their forced meanings | | | | great extent and I flee away. A friend of mine, |
| and guiding the common folk wrongly. He did not | | | | who knows the reality , says: `` Hey, why are you |
| tolerate it and he decided to show the people real | | | | running ? This is not snake but rope''. |
| purport of scriptures. | | | | If we make an analysis of this episode, these are |
| His philosophical works are in Sanskrit. One can | | | | the conclusions we come to: |
| summarize his thinking way in the following | | | | 1. When I assumed that there was snake, there |
| manner: | | | | was no snake. |
| Our existence is depending upon the experience, | | | | 2. When I realized that it was not snake and only |
| `I'. For example, `I see, I hear, I smell, I touch, I | | | | rope, the rope did not born afresh out of snake, |
| taste, I think, I work ' so on and so forth. Without | | | | why ? Because it was nothing but rope. |
| this `I', there is no experience. | | | | 3. In both cases, i.e., in the time when I confused |
| Now let us analyze this experience: `When I was | | | | and I realized the truth, rope was nothing but |
| boy , when I was girl, I was sick, I will be | | | | rope and there was no change. |
| departing on Wednesday'- these expressions are | | | | 4. Snake was my imagination. No snake was born |
| time-bound. `I am in collage ', `I am sitting with my | | | | when I confused and no snake was vanished |
| friend '-these expressions are space-bound. | | | | when I realized the truth. |
| In these expressions, only the parts like `was boy, | | | | It is not correct to argue that the real snake was |
| on Wednesday, sitting with my friend' are | | | | born when I was in confusion. |
| time-bound or space-bound. But the `I' ? | | | | One may argue: `There WAS real snake. |
| `I' is neither space-bound nor time-bound. How? | | | | Otherwise. why would you fled away? Why would |
| Very simple. Consider this: When I was sick, I | | | | you sweated? Why would you screamed?'. This |
| could not able to move freely and was bedridden. | | | | argument is nonsensical. Because- |
| After I became convalescent I can run. Think | | | | A. The friend who consoled me saying that there |
| over this. It is not the `I' that became sick and | | | | was no snake had not seen any snake. |
| convalescent-it is my body. | | | | B. Fake money notes are not real. But people |
| Is there any change of sick `I' and convalescent `I' | | | | transact them. When they know they are not |
| ? Is there any difference between `boy I' and | | | | real, they say `Oh, I confused these notes as real |
| `adult I' ? Is there any difference between | | | | ones! ' No body says `when I transacted with |
| `yesterday's I' and `today's I' ? Is there slightest | | | | these fake notes they HAD status of REALITY'. |
| change between `traveling I and resting I' ? | | | | Shankaracharya says that even when we are |
| This unchangeable I is our real soul- and not the | | | | experiencing as if the I-ness is mixed with physical |
| one which is changing and mixing with body | | | | works, mental pursuits and sense-organ-activities, |
| consciousness. | | | | the real nature of this mixed I-ness, Super |
| Our soul is unchanged, it is neither space-bound, | | | | Biggest Soul is not mixed. |
| nor time-bound. The changeable experiences- | | | | And that is our real nature! |
| which are mixed with `I- experiences' are not soul. | | | | If we know a thief a thief, then always we are |
| If we go very deeply, our real nature is Super | | | | careful while transacting with him, don't we? |
| Biggest Soul! This is not depending upon `I- | | | | If we understand that the sense-organs , physical |
| experience'. On the contrary, this `I-ness' is | | | | body and mind are not our REAL NATURE, we |
| depending upon this Super Biggest Soul! | | | | will be free from unwanted worldly attachments. |
| Always we superimpose this changeable I-ness | | | | |