THE ENTRY POINT

Does most of our sorrow arise from an ignorance of who we are? 

In the following verse, Krish na seems to imply that knowing who we are is essential to penetrate beyond the illusions of this world.  

Chapter 2-25

Krishna :

Invisible is he to mortal eyes, beyond thought and beyond change.  Know that he is, and cease from sorrow.  (Translated by Juan Mascaro, Penguin Books)

The eyes can play many tricks on us as things are rarely what they seem. 

Is their a vision beyond what can be seen by these mortal eyes?  If so, how can we catch a glimpse of it?

To help us explore a realm of new possibilities, we might try shutting our eyes.  We often find those engaged in meditation or prayer naturally closing their eyes as if aware of some needed withdrawal from the countless distractions of this world. 

By denying ourselves of the world made known to us through these eyes, we can open ourselves up to another world that resides within us. 

Krishna may be providing a precise prescription here for those serious about knowing who they truly are.  He begins by pointing out to us that the Spirit cannot be known through the world of the five senses giving particular emphasis to the sense of sight.

Does this imply that we should condemn our senses or seek to escape their influence?

Well, we can try but it will probably do us no good.   However, by drawing our awareness to the limitations of our senses, we can invite ourselves to go beyond them.

Krishna moves on to assert that the Spirit cannot be known by thoughts.  This is what makes engaging in these writings especially humbling for me - How can one discuss that which is beyond discussion? This is the particular challenge we face when attempting to communicate that which is beyond words.

Thoughts are feeble representations. 

When we come to appreciate the limitations of thought, we can grow more familiar with the nothingness from which all things arise.  As a wave disappears into the same sea from which it originated, thoughts dissolve back into the same nothingness from which they arose.

Krishna invites us to go beyond the representations of thought to the nothingness from which they came.  There is a verse in the Bible that seems to echo the same sentiments for me: “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)

How does one go beyond their thoughts?

It is a tricky situation.  If you attempt to escape your thoughts, you will drown in them.  After all, the very attempt to escape arises from the realm of thought itself.  The most practical method of going beyond thought is by giving company to your thoughts.  By drawing your awareness to the thoughts you have, without attempting to avert or attract a particular outcome, you will find yourself automatically slipping into a universe beyond thought.

In the above verse, Krishna states that the Spirit can only be known when one goes beyond change.  This may seem like a baffling claim. In a world where change seems to be the only constant, how is it possible for one to escape it?

Change is a by-product of identification.  If you identify yourself with the image reflecting back to you from the mirror, then the change you experience is a direct outcome of that particular association. 

For several weeks now, we have been deconstructing this notion of self that we tend to identify ourselves with.  What happens when the “you” that you have taken for granted begins to disappear?  

To witness or experience change one needs to assume a reference point.  When you lose all sense of who you are, you may begin to enter this world beyond change that Krishna speaks of.

There is a knowing beyond thought, a truth beyond description. 

When we are in an experience, what prompts us to make sense of it or relate it to what we already know? 

Sorrow is an after-thought, a consequence of exiting an experience so as to label it.  There is no need to get frustrated though.  Each exit is an entry point.

With all my support and best wishes,

Freedom A. Malhotra