Unchanging Consciousness - Intro to Advaita Vedanta - Part 3

Summary

The video script delves into the Vedantic concept of the 'atma' or true self, which is described as 'sat-cit-ananda'—unborn, eternal, pure consciousness, and the source of happiness. It explains that our identification with the physical body and its attributes leads to suffering, which can be alleviated by recognizing the atma's independence. The focus then shifts to the mind, emphasizing the distinction between the observer (consciousness) and the observed (thoughts, perceptions, and emotions). Using the metaphor of the sun illuminating objects without being affected by them, the script illustrates that consciousness remains unaltered by mental activities. It further clarifies this through the analogy of a crystal's clarity, which is not affected by the colors around it. The script concludes with the suggestion that meditation can help one experientially confirm the unchanging nature of consciousness, leading to a state of being unaffected by mental fluctuations and thus free from suffering.

Takeaways

• 🧘 The true self, or atma, is described as sat-cit-ananda, which stands for the eternal, conscious, and blissful being.
• 🌟 Our usual identification with the physical body and its attributes obscures the understanding of our true, unchanging nature.
• 🧐 Vedanta teaches that atma is independent of the physical body and mind, leading to a healthy detachment and freedom from suffering.
• 🔍 The Vedantic method of drik drisha viveka helps differentiate between the seer (observer) and the seen (observed), including mental objects.
• 💭 Mental objects or vrittis are categorized into perceptions, cognitions, and emotions, all of which are known to the conscious observer.
• 🌈 The consciousness, as the observer of vrittis, remains unchanging and unaffected by the perceptions, cognitions, and emotions that arise.
• ☀️ The metaphor of the sun illustrates how consciousness illuminates but is not affected by what it shines upon, similar to how it relates to vrittis.
• 🚗 The need for an unchanging observer to accurately perceive the constant change in vrittis is emphasized, highlighting the unchanging nature of consciousness.
• 🌁 A clear crystal appearing orange when near an orange cloth is used to demonstrate how consciousness may seem affected by emotions, but is not.
• 🧩 The illusion of consciousness being affected by vrittis is due to their close proximity, much like the crystal's false appearance of color.
• 🧘‍♂️ Meditation is proposed as a technique to experientially confirm the unchanging and unaffected nature of consciousness, even amidst mental activities.
• ⏳ Brief moments of mental silence during meditation can provide the clarity needed to understand that consciousness is always full and perfect, unaffected by vrittis.

Q & A

What is the term 'atma' referring to in the context of the script?

In the script, 'atma' refers to the true self, which is the essence of one's being. It is described as 'sat-cit-ananda', representing the unborn, eternal being (sat), pure consciousness (cit), and the source of happiness (ananda).

How does Vedanta's teachings help in understanding the independence of atma from the physical body?

Vedanta's teachings assist in realizing that the atma is completely independent of the physical body. This understanding leads to a healthy detachment from the body, which in turn eliminates the suffering that may be caused by bodily experiences.

What is the Vedantic method of 'drik drisha viveka' and how does it apply to the mind?

Drik drisha viveka is a Vedantic technique for differentiating the seer (the observer) from the seen (the observed). It is used to distinguish between the conscious observer and the objects of perception, including mental objects like thoughts, which are known as vrittis.

What are the three categories of vrittis mentioned in the script?

The three categories of vrittis are perceptions, cognitions, and emotions. Perceptions are produced by the sense organs, cognitions arise from the intellect, and emotions are the various feelings that occur in the mind.

How does the script explain the apparent effect of vrittis on the conscious observer?

The script uses the metaphor of the sun to explain that while vrittis seem to affect the conscious observer, they do not truly impact it. Just as the sun illuminates objects without being affected by them, consciousness remains unaffected by the vrittis it illuminates.

What is the significance of the unchanging nature of the conscious observer?

The unchanging nature of the conscious observer is crucial for accurately observing the constantly changing vrittis. If the observer were to change along with the vrittis, it would be impossible to recognize their changes. This unchanging quality allows the observer to remain unaffected by the vrittis.

How does the script illustrate the concept that consciousness is unaffected by mental activities?

The script uses the example of a clear crystal that appears to change color when placed near an orange cloth. Despite the appearance, the crystal remains clear, illustrating that consciousness, like the crystal, remains unaffected by the mental activities (vrittis) it observes.

What is the purpose of the meditation technique described in the script?

The meditation technique is designed to provide a clear, doubt-free understanding of the fact that the unchanging conscious observer is unaffected by the activities of the mind. It helps to silence the mind momentarily, allowing the individual to experience the unchanging nature of consciousness.

Why is it important to personally discover the truth of the unchanging nature of consciousness?

Personal discovery is important because it allows for a clear and doubt-free understanding of the unchanging nature of consciousness. This knowledge can lead to the elimination of suffering caused by mental activities and a deeper understanding of one's true nature.

How does the script suggest one can confirm the unchanging nature of consciousness through meditation?

The script suggests using a meditation technique that involves reciting a mantra and focusing on the gap between repetitions. In this gap, where there are no thoughts, perceptions, or emotions, one can experientially confirm the unchanging and unaffected nature of consciousness.

What is the ultimate goal of understanding the teachings about the unchanging nature of consciousness?

The ultimate goal is to achieve a state of being where one is no longer subject to suffering caused by mental activities. This understanding leads to a realization that regardless of the mental states one experiences, the true nature of consciousness remains full, perfect, and unaffected.

Outlines

00:00

🧘 Discovering the Unborn Self

The first paragraph introduces the concept of atma, the true self, which is described as sat-cit-ananda, meaning the eternal being that is pure consciousness and the source of happiness. It explains that our true self is often obscured by ignorance, leading us to identify with our physical and temporary traits. Vedanta's teachings help us realize that atma is independent of the physical body, leading to a healthy detachment and freedom from suffering. The focus then shifts to the mind, emphasizing the subtler confusion that arises from not recognizing the independence of atma from the mind. The Vedantic method of drik drisha viveka is introduced to differentiate between the seer and the seen, the observer and the observed. Mental objects or vrittis are categorized into perceptions, cognitions, and emotions, all of which are known to the conscious observer but are separate from it.

05:02

🌞 The Unaffected Consciousness

The second paragraph delves into the ancient wisdom that consciousness remains unaffected by the perceptions, cognitions, and emotions that arise in the mind. Using the metaphor of the sun, which illuminates objects without being affected by them, the text explains that consciousness, like the sun, is not affected by the vrittis it reveals. The rishis clarify that while emotions seem to impact us, they do not truly affect the unchanging observer. The text challenges our everyday experiences, which suggest that emotions do affect us, and proposes that this is a misinterpretation. It also discusses the need for an unchanging observer to accurately perceive the ever-changing vrittis, using the example of a driver on a freeway to illustrate the point.

10:04

🔍 The Observer and the Observed

The third paragraph continues the exploration of the unchanging conscious observer and its relationship with the vrittis. It asserts that the observer is unaffected by any mental activity, including perceptions, cognitions, and emotions. The text uses the example of a crystal appearing to change color when held next to a cloth to illustrate how emotions seem to affect us but do not truly alter the unchanging consciousness. The crystal, despite its apparent color change, remains clear, just as consciousness remains unaffected by the vrittis. The text questions the perceived distance between the vrittis and the observer, suggesting there is none, and that every vritti is immersed in consciousness.

15:04

🕊️ The Unchanging Nature of Consciousness

The fourth paragraph builds on the previous discussion, emphasizing that consciousness is always clear and unaffected by the qualities of the vrittis, which only seem to taint it due to their close proximity. The text likens the false appearance of the crystal's color to the false impression that emotions affect consciousness. It asserts that consciousness remains unchanged and unaffected, regardless of the emotions experienced. The teaching that consciousness is unchanging is highlighted as a key Vedantic principle that must be personally discovered with clarity. Meditation is introduced as a technique to help gain doubt-free knowledge of this truth, using the crystal metaphor to illustrate how brief experiences of the clear crystal can dispel doubts about its true nature.

20:05

🧘‍♂️ Experiencing the Unaffected Self

The fifth paragraph describes a meditation technique that can help one experientially confirm the unchanging nature of consciousness. It suggests that even a brief moment of mental silence, such as the gap between repetitions of a mantra, can provide the opportunity to realize that consciousness is untainted by mental activity. The text explains that this brief experience is sufficient to confirm the clarity of consciousness, just as a moment of seeing the clear crystal dispels doubts about its true color. The meditation technique is presented as a way to personally experience and understand the teachings of Vedanta regarding the unaffected nature of consciousness.

25:05

💎 The Eternal, Unaffected Atma

The sixth and final paragraph reinforces the concept that consciousness remains unaffected and perfect, even in the presence of vrittis. It draws a parallel between the crystal's clarity, which is unaffected by its surroundings, and the unchanging nature of atma. The text concludes by reminding us that this unchanging, full, and perfect consciousness is our true essence, sat cit ananda, atma. It encourages the realization of this truth to overcome suffering caused by the vrittis, regardless of whether they are perceptions, cognitions, or emotions.

Keywords

💡Atma

Atma refers to the true self or the essence of one's being in Vedanta philosophy. It is described as 'sat-cit-ananda,' which means 'the unborn, eternal being,' characterized by purity (sat), consciousness (cit), and the source of happiness (ananda). In the video, it is emphasized that atma is independent of the physical body and the mind, and recognizing this leads to a healthy detachment and freedom from suffering.

💡Vedanta

Vedanta is one of the six systems of Indian philosophy that deals with the knowledge of the self and the ultimate reality. It is the philosophical foundation upon which the teachings in the video are based. Vedanta provides methods, such as drik drisha viveka, to discern the true nature of the self (atma) from the mind and body, leading to self-realization.

💡Drik Drisha Viveka

Drik drisha viveka is a Vedantic technique for differentiating the seer (drik) from the seen (drisha), the observer from the observed. It is a method to distinguish between the conscious observer (atma) and the objects of consciousness, including the mind's activities. The video uses this technique to illustrate that the true self is unaffected by mental objects such as thoughts, perceptions, and emotions.

💡Vrittis

Vrittis are the mental modifications or activities that arise in the mind, categorized into perceptions, cognitions, and emotions. They are known to the conscious observer as objects separate from the self. The video discusses how vrittis, despite appearing to affect the observer, do not truly impact the unchanging consciousness of the atma.

💡Perceptions

Perceptions are vrittis that result from sensory experiences, such as seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or touching. They are conveyed to the mind and become known to the conscious observer. In the context of the video, perceptions are used to illustrate how the mind processes sensory information and how these can be distinguished from the observer's true nature.

💡Cognitions

Cognitions are a type of vritti that arise from the intellect (buddhi) and are referred to as thoughts in the video. They include mental processes such as problem-solving, planning, and understanding. The video emphasizes that, like perceptions and emotions, cognitions are separate from the unchanging consciousness and do not affect it.

💡Emotions

Emotions are vrittis that encompass feelings such as happiness, sadness, anger, and love. They are experienced as arising in the mind and seem to affect the conscious observer. However, the video clarifies that as an unchanging observer, the true self (atma) remains unaffected by these emotional vrittis.

💡Unchanging Observer

The unchanging observer is the concept of the true self (atma) as a constant, unmodified consciousness that is distinct from the ever-changing vrittis of the mind. The video uses the metaphor of the sun to illustrate that just as the sun is unaffected by what it illuminates, the unchanging observer is unaffected by perceptions, cognitions, and emotions.

💡Meditation

Meditation is a technique used in Vedanta to gain experiential knowledge of the unchanging nature of the self. The video introduces a specific meditation method involving the repetition of a mantra and the use of gaps between repetitions to quiet the mind. This practice allows for the direct experience of the unchanging consciousness, free from the influence of vrittis.

💡Sat-Cit-Ananda

Sat-cit-ananda is a Sanskrit term that describes the true nature of the self (atma) as being eternal (sat), conscious (cit), and blissful (ananda). The video discusses how understanding and realizing this true nature can lead to a state of detachment and freedom from suffering caused by the identification with the physical body or the mind's activities.

💡Suffering

Suffering, in the context of the video, arises from the misidentification of the self with the physical body and the mind's activities (vrittis). The video teaches that by realizing the independence of atma from the body and mind, one can achieve a state of healthy detachment, thereby eliminating the suffering caused by bodily and mental states.

Highlights

The concept of atma, the true self, is described as sat-cit-ananda, representing the unborn, eternal being with pure consciousness and the source of happiness.

Identification with the physical body and its traits, such as gender and health, obscures the understanding of the true self.

Vedanta's teachings help in realizing the independence of atma from the physical body, leading to a healthy detachment and elimination of suffering.

The presentation shifts focus from the body to the mind to explore the independence of atma from mental activities.

Drik drisha viveka, the Vedantic method of differentiating the seer from the seen, is used to understand the separation between the observer and the observed.

Mental objects or vrittis are categorized into perceptions, cognitions, and emotions, all of which are known to the conscious observer.

The rishis discovered that consciousness remains unaffected by the perceptions, cognitions, and emotions that arise in the mind.

The metaphor of the sun illuminating objects without being affected by them is used to explain the unchanging nature of consciousness.

The constant flux of vrittis requires an unchanging observer to accurately perceive their changes.

The unchanging observer is separate and unaffected by the perceptions, cognitions, and emotions, similar to the sun's unaffected nature.

The Vedantic example of a crystal appearing colored when near cloth but remaining clear demonstrates the illusion of emotions affecting consciousness.

Consciousness is always clear and unaffected, regardless of the emotions or mental activities that seem to arise within it.

The teachings of Vedanta emphasize the importance of personally discovering the unchanging nature of consciousness with clarity and without doubt.

Meditation is introduced as a technique to experientially confirm the unchanging and unaffected nature of consciousness.

A specific meditation technique involving the use of a mantra and the experience of gaps between mantra repetitions can lead to a clear understanding of consciousness.

The brief experience of a mind free from vrittis during meditation can remove doubts about the true nature of consciousness.

When the knowledge of the unchanging nature of consciousness is clear, it leads to the end of suffering caused by mental activities.

The essential nature of consciousness, sat cit ananda, atma, remains full and perfect even in the presence of mental activities.

Transcripts

Welcome!

In the prior presentation we explored the nature of the true self, atma,

which is the essence of your being.

The scriptures describe atma as sat-cit-ananda, the unborn, eternal being, sat,

which is pure consciousness, cit, and the source of happiness, ananda.

This inner reality is usually obscured or covered by a veil of ignorance,

and as a result, we end up identifying ourselves not as sat cit ananda,

but instead, as being male or female, young or old, healthy or ill and so on.

Yet, these traits really belong to our bodies, not to the conscious being that we truly are.

With the help of Vedanta’s teachings,

we can discover the fact that atma is completely independent of the physical body.

This discovery results in a healthy detachment towards the body

and eliminates any suffering it might cause.

In this presentation, we shift our focus from the body to the mind.

Just as failing to discern atma’s independence from the body causes suffering,

the failure to discern atma’s independence from your mind

only causes additional suffering, but it’s a much more subtle and insidious kind of confusion,

as we will see.

To begin our inquiry, we can once again employ the important Vedantic method of drik drisha viveka,

the technique of differentiating or distinguishing the seer from the seen,

the observer from the observed, the knower from the known.

As we saw before, anything known to you is an object,

and is therefore different or separate from YOU, the conscious, knowing observer.

Everything in the world, including your own body, can be known to you as an object,

and is therefore different from you.

Now, what about objects, not in the world,

but in your mind, mental objects, like thoughts?

The activities of your mind are also known to you,

just like objects in the world are known to you.

Such mental objects or activities are known as vrittis in Sanskrit.

We can divide these vrittis into three categories:

perceptions, cognitions, and emotions.

Some vrittis are produced by your sense organs.

Whatever you see, hear, taste, smell, or touch is conveyed to your mind

where they arise as vrittis and become known to you.

These vrittis are known as perceptions.

In addition to perceptions, other vrittis that arise in your mind

are produced by your intellect, your buddhi.

These vrittis can simply be referred to as thoughts,

but psychology books call them cognitions.

Finally, the third kind of vritti includes all your emotions.

Happiness and sadness, anger, disappointment, joy and love

- all these emotions arise as vrittis in your mind.

Every activity of your mind falls into one of these three categories: perceptions, cognitions, or emotions.

All these vrittis arise in your mind and become known to you, the conscious observer.

As the knower of these vrittis, you are necessarily separate and different from them.

You are the observer, and they are the observed.

But, even though these vrittis are separate from you, they certainly seem to affect you,

whether they are perceptions, cognitions, or emotions.

When you smell something really foul, the terrible stench seems to affect you.

When a dear friend has inexplicably stopped returning your emails and phone calls,

great uncertainty seems to affect you.

When happiness or sadness arises in your mind, those emotions definitely seem to affect you.

Everything that happens in your mind seems to affect you,

the conscious being, the observer of those vrittis, atma.

However, the ancient rishis discovered that consciousness is utterly unaffected

by all the perceptions, cognitions, and emotions that arise in your mind.

So, whatever happens in your mind doesn’t truly affect you, the conscious being.

Let’s find out how this can be so.

The rishis explained this with a metaphor:

the sun reveals countless objects in the world by shining upon them,

by illumining them.

But, the sun doesn’t get affected in any way whatsoever by what it shines upon.

If the sun shines on a sacred scripture, it doesn’t become holy.

If the sun shines on a filthy gutter, it doesn’t become impure.

Likewise, the consciousness that illumines the activities of your mind

is not truly affected by the vrittis that it illumines.

That means, when consciousness reveals the presence of happiness in your mind,

consciousness doesn’t become happy.

And when it reveals the presence of sadness in your mind,

consciousness doesn’t become sad.

On the other hand, this assertion seems to absolutely contradict our usual experience.

When happiness or sadness arises in our minds,

we definitely feel like those emotions affect the consciousness that reveals them.

However, if we examine this more carefully,

it turns out to be another situation in which we misinterpret our experiences.

We’ve already discussed how easy it is to misinterpret our experiences,

like when we watch the sunset.

The sun doesn’t go down; it actually remains stationary in the sky

while we stand on a rotating planet and slowly tilt over backwards.

Yet, we wrongly say that the sun is going down.

Just as we misinterpret our experience of the sunset,

we also misinterpret our experiences of happiness, sadness, and everything else that arises in our minds.

How does this confusion take place?

Your vrittis are in a constant state of flux.

In your mind, perceptions, cognitions, and emotions continually change, from moment to moment.

If you, the conscious observer, are to accurately observe

the constantly changing vrittis, you must necessarily be an unchanging observer.

Why? If the observer changes along with the vrittis,

how could their changes be recognized?

For example, suppose you’re driving on the freeway at 60 mph,

and in the lane next to you, there’s another car

traveling at exactly the same speed.

When you glance at the other driver, you can see that he’s drinking coffee while driving.

He’s actually drinking coffee at 60 mph, but is that what you experience?

No.

You see him sitting motionless in the driver’s seat, sipping his coffee.

If you want to see him drink coffee at 60 mph, you have to watch from the roadside,

standing still.

Only as an unmoving observer

can you accurately perceive him drinking coffee at 60 mph.

This example shows that only as an unchanging observer of your vrittis

can you accurately experience their continually changing nature.

To understand this more clearly, try to visualize this:

suppose a grey cloud of sadness were to gradually descend upon your mind.

If you, the observer of your mind, were to simultaneously become grey,

as the grey cloud pervaded your mind bit by bit,

could you really sense or detect the growing presence of the grey cloud of sadness?

In order to observe sadness descending upon your mind,

you must necessarily be an unchanging observer.

And, an unchanging observer is completely unaffected by whatever is being observed,

like the sun is completely unaffected by all that it illumines.

This is true not just for sadness, but for all the activities of your mind,

for every perception, cognition, and emotion.

When you see the blue sky, you, the observer, don’t become blue.

When you smell a foul stench, you, the observer, don’t stink.

These perceptions don’t affect you, because you are the conscious observer,

separate and distinct from the vrittis that arise in your mind.

This applies to your cognitions, as well.

Whether you are engrossed in problem solving at work, or you are balancing your checkbook,

or you are planning a vacation, the vrittis that arise in your mind

due to these cognitive activities are all observed by you.

As the unchanging conscious observer,

separate and distinct from all those cognitions, you are completely unaffected by them.

You are the unchanging observer, not only of your perceptions and cognitions,

but of all your emotions, as well.

When you feel angry, hurt, joyful or worried, these feelings arise as vrittis in your mind.

Once again, as the unchanging conscious observer,

separate and distinct from all those emotions, you are completely unaffected by them.

Yet, if anger, hurt or joy arises in your mind, you’d probably say, “I am angry,”

or “I am hurt,” and so on.

You would never say, “I’m not angry; but some anger has arisen in my mind.”

Hmm...

But, as odd as that may sound, that’s exactly what happens.

When anger arises in your mind,

you, the unchanging conscious observer, do NOT become angry.

You say, “I am angry,” because anger SEEMS to affect you.

It seems to somehow rub off on consciousness,

as if consciousness were stained or tainted by these emotions.

But if consciousness illumines vrittis, like the sun illumines objects in the world,

then how can it actually be affected?

Vedanta uses a wonderful example to show how activities of your mind,

like your emotions in particular, seem to taint or affect you, the unchanging observer.

This crystal, as you can see, is perfectly clear.

Yet, when I hold it in front of my robes, it appears to become orange.

The orangeness that belongs to my robes seems to have affected the crystal,

changing its color.

Of course, this crystal remains clear, but it certainly appears orange.

In the same way, emotions that belong to your mind seem to rub off on you, so to speak,

they seem to taint or affect you somehow, even though, as an unchanging conscious observer,

you are actually unaffected by those emotions in any way.

Due to the nearness or proximity of this crystal to the cloth,

the orangeness of the cloth appears in this crystal.

If I hold the crystal at a distance, it won’t appear orange.

Then, let me ask you,

what is the distance between your vrittis and you, the conscious observer?

What is the distance between consciousness and your perceptions, cognitions and emotions?

There’s no distance at all.

Every vritti is bathed in consciousness, like fields and forests bathed in sunlight.

Due to the close proximity between your vrittis and consciousness,

the qualities of the vrittis, like sadness and hurt, seem to taint or rub off on unchanging consciousness,

like the orangeness of the cloth seems to taint this clear crystal.

Now, let’s consider the next point.

This crystal remains perfectly clear, even now, while it appears orange.

It’s orangeness is only an appearance, not a reality.

The orangeness of the cloth is real, but the orangeness of this crystal is a mere appearance.

The crystal’s orangeness is false.

It’s false like a snake projected on a rope in the dark alley.

It’s false like the sun’s apparent travel towards the horizon each evening.

Even when the sun appears to go down, we know that it’s actually stationary.

Even when the crystal appears orange, we know that it remains perfectly clear.

And even when sadness and hurt appear to rub off on consciousness,

we know that unchanging consciousness remains utterly unaffected.

Suppose you want a clear crystal, right now.

Well, there’s nothing that needs to be done.

It’s always clear, in spite of its appearance.

In the same way, if you want to be completely unaffected by sadness, anger and hurt,

there’s absolutely nothing that needs to be done.

The consciousness that’s your essential nature remains unchanged and unaffected by your emotions.

This is one of Vedanta’s most important teachings.

This truth must be personally discovered with perfect clarity and unfettered by doubts.

The scriptures say, hastamalakavat jnayate,

“it must be known as clearly as a fruit in the palm of your hand.”

The problem is, for most people, this great truth remains hidden, unheard and unknown.

For those fortunate enough to hear these teachings, even when this truth is known,

it might not be known with perfect clarity and unfettered by doubts.

So, for the sake of making this knowledge perfectly clear and doubt-free,

Vedanta employs a variety of techniques, and one of those techniques is meditation.

There’s a particular meditation technique that can help you gain clear, doubt-free knowledge

of the truth that you, as the unchanging conscious observer,

are utterly unaffected by the activities of your mind.

To introduce this meditation technique, let’s examine our orange crystal again.

Suppose you’ve only seen this crystal in the proximity of the cloth;

so, every time you’ve seen the crystal, it’s appeared orange to you.

Now, even though I tell you that this crystal is really clear,

and even though you have no reason to doubt my words,

so far, you’ve only experienced an orange crystal.

And as a result of this, you might have some doubts

as to whether or not this crystal is truly clear.

In the same way, all your experiences, throughout your entire life,

have taken place in the presence of vrittis,

vrittis that seem to affect or color consciousness due to their close proximity.

Even though Vedanta tells you that consciousness isn’t affected by those vrittis,

and even though you have no reason to doubt the teachings of Vedanta,

you might still have some doubts

as to whether or not consciousness is truly unaffected by vrittis.

But, those doubts could be removed by the experience of being a conscious being

in the absence of those vrittis which always seem to taint consciousness.

Back to the crystal.

Suppose I remove this crystal from the cloth, just for a few moments.

Watch carefully.

Now, in those few moments, you could see, without doubt,

that this crystal is perfectly clear.

Even though the crystal appears orange again,

you don’t have any doubts about it truly being clear.

Your brief experience of the clear crystal soundly confirmed what I’ve been telling you all along;

that this crystal remains clear in spite of the continued appearance of orangeness.

Now, to confirm the fact that this crystal really is clear,

how long should be your experience of the clear crystal?

Should I hold it away from the cloth for several minutes or several hours?

That’s certainly not necessary.

An experience of just a few moments is enough to experientially confirm the clearness of the crystal.

Based on this example,

suppose you were to practice a simple meditation technique

that could make your mind absolutely quiet, just for a few moments.

You don’t need to be an advanced yogi.

You don’t need to practice samadhi for hours at a time.

You only need to silence your mind for just a few moments.

That shouldn’t be too hard.

A few moments of silence can easily be produced

in the interval or gap between mental repetitions of a mantra.

For example, if your mantra is om namah shivaya,

after reciting shivaya and before reciting the next om, there’s a tiny gap.

If you recite the mantra for a long time, it’ll eventually become firmly established in your mind.

Then, when it’s firmly established, you can gradually increase the gap between mantras

like this:

om namah shivaya...

When you’re meditating, during the gap between mantras,

there are no thoughts, no perceptions, and no emotions.

What remains?

You remain.

You remain present as consciousness, unchanging consciousness.

And in that gap between mantras, you can personally discover

that consciousness is utterly untainted by any mental activity whatsoever.

Let me explain.

When I remove this crystal from the cloth, not a trace of orangeness remains,

because the crystal was never affected in any way by the orangeness.

In the same way, when all vrittis cease for a few moments,

you can discover that consciousness is utterly free from any trace or residue left over from those vrittis,

because consciousness was never affected by them in the first place.

Using meditation in this way, you have an opportunity to experientially confirm

what Vedanta has been telling you; that your true nature as an eternal, conscious being

is utterly unaffected by anything and everything that happens in your mind.

When this knowledge is perfectly clear and doubt-free,

you will no longer be subject to suffering caused by your vrittis,

whether they are perceptions, cognitions, or emotions.

If you smell a foul stench, you’ll know that consciousness remains utterly unaffected.

If your mind is filled with uncertainty and confusion,

you’ll know that consciousness remains utterly unaffected.

And when a cloud of sadness descends upon your mind,

you’ll know that consciousness always remains unaffected.

Consciousness forever remains full and perfect, even in the presence of vrittis.

Just like this crystal remains clear even in the presence of orangeness.

That consciousness, unchanging, full and perfect,

that consciousness is your essential nature, sat cit ananda, atma.