Sense Perception, This and That
All that belongs to the realm of senses, including thought, constitutes This. What is beyond the reach of our senses and mind is That," said the Guru. The young, no-nonsense pupil shook his head, unwilling to accept an abstract point. "But, Sir," he queried, "Why should we at all confuse our minds with what is not real?" The Guru smiled. "Can you show me here something that you consider real?" he asked the pupil. "Of course!" replied the pupil and, pointing to a bell that was dangling from the ceiling, said: "This bell, for instance. I say this is real. But if you want me to believe in a second bell which is not here, well, I find it hard to take that." The Guru smiled again. He asked: "What makes you call this bell real?" Pupil: "Why, I see it clearly before me with my eyes!" Guru: "Suppose you are blind, will not this bell become unreal?" Pupil: "Not at all. Because even though blind, I can hear the bell ringing which is evidence of its reality." Guru: "Suppose TREE you are deaf?" Pupil: "Well, I can still feel the bell with my hands. The bell remains real." Guru: "Suppose your sense of touch is benumbed...what if you neither feel nor see nor hear nor taste? What happens to the bell?" The pupil began to see a point. ""And, now," said the Guru, "let's reverse the situation. You are like a corpse which can perceive nothing. I invest you with just one sense, the sense of touch. You feel the bell; it becomes real for you. I give you back another sense: you can now hear the sound of the bell. Does it therefore become 'more' real? I give you back your eyes. Does the bell become still more real? I give back to you all the five senses: the bell for you is 'totally' real! Do you agree?" The pupil tentatively nodded 'yes'. "How absurd and vain!" ех- claimed the Guru. "How can you a sume that there are only five sens of perception? Suppose I give you sixth sense, does it not add an e tirely new dimension of reality the bell? Suppose I give you a se enth...a tenth... a thousandth sens of perception? What does the be transform into? Equipped with thousand different senses of perce tion, will you be able to recognis what you presently recognise as th bell? Even then, your perception the reality of the bell cannot called total." The pupil surrendered in siler understanding. "My boy," said th Guru with great affection, "what b longs to the realm of senses, inclu ing thought, is 'This' (idam). What beyond the reach of senses is "Tha (adah). Vedanta is a about This and That... Th prelude to the Upanishad says: This is a Whole. Tha is a Whole. This Whole ha issued from That Whole When This Whole issue from That, That Whole re mained a Whole. The Guru proceeded instruct the pupil in th basics of faith in God. Yo should not reject God because you cannot perceiv Him with your limited senses. God i That. He is also This. Intellectual hu mility is born of understanding th limitations of your understanding Faith is founded on this wisdon born of humility. What we perceive with our limited sensory equipmen is a minute fraction of what is real The That is beyond the reach of ever your imagination, because imagina tion is rooted in what you perceive To imagine how imagination fails ir the realm of That, God cannot be de fined because all definitions belong to the realm of This, and God is That. Little wonder then, that ou sages described God (Brahma) nega tively as neti, neti- not-this, not this. Every devotee can feel God, bu only to a worthy devotee does He reveal Himself completely.
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in the Article above are K S Ramr’s personal views and kashmiribhatta.in is not in any way responsible for the opinions expressed in the above article. The article belongs to its respective owner or owners and this site does not claim any right over it.
Courtesy: K S Ram and Speaking Tree ,Times of India
Sense Perception, This and That
All that belongs to the realm of senses, including thought, constitutes This. What is beyond the reach of our senses and mind is That," said the Guru. The young, no-nonsense pupil shook his head, unwilling to accept an abstract point. "But, Sir," he queried, "Why should we at all confuse our minds with what is not real?" The Guru smiled. "Can you show me here something that you consider real?" he asked the pupil. "Of course!" replied the pupil and, pointing to a bell that was dangling from the ceiling, said: "This bell, for instance. I say this is real. But if you want me to believe in a second bell which is not here, well, I find it hard to take that." The Guru smiled again. He asked: "What makes you call this bell real?" Pupil: "Why, I see it clearly before me with my eyes!" Guru: "Suppose you are blind, will not this bell become unreal?" Pupil: "Not at all. Because even though blind, I can hear the bell ringing which is evidence of its reality." Guru: "Suppose TREE you are deaf?" Pupil: "Well, I can still feel the bell with my hands. The bell remains real." Guru: "Suppose your sense of touch is benumbed...what if you neither feel nor see nor hear nor taste? What happens to the bell?" The pupil began to see a point. ""And, now," said the Guru, "let's reverse the situation. You are like a corpse which can perceive nothing. I invest you with just one sense, the sense of touch. You feel the bell; it becomes real for you. I give you back another sense: you can now hear the sound of the bell. Does it therefore become 'more' real? I give you back your eyes. Does the bell become still more real? I give back to you all the five senses: the bell for you is 'totally' real! Do you agree?" The pupil tentatively nodded 'yes'. "How absurd and vain!" ех- claimed the Guru. "How can you a sume that there are only five sens of perception? Suppose I give you sixth sense, does it not add an e tirely new dimension of reality the bell? Suppose I give you a se enth...a tenth... a thousandth sens of perception? What does the be transform into? Equipped with thousand different senses of perce tion, will you be able to recognis what you presently recognise as th bell? Even then, your perception the reality of the bell cannot called total." The pupil surrendered in siler understanding. "My boy," said th Guru with great affection, "what b longs to the realm of senses, inclu ing thought, is 'This' (idam). What beyond the reach of senses is "Tha (adah). Vedanta is a about This and That... Th prelude to the Upanishad says: This is a Whole. Tha is a Whole. This Whole ha issued from That Whole When This Whole issue from That, That Whole re mained a Whole. The Guru proceeded instruct the pupil in th basics of faith in God. Yo should not reject God because you cannot perceiv Him with your limited senses. God i That. He is also This. Intellectual hu mility is born of understanding th limitations of your understanding Faith is founded on this wisdon born of humility. What we perceive with our limited sensory equipmen is a minute fraction of what is real The That is beyond the reach of ever your imagination, because imagina tion is rooted in what you perceive To imagine how imagination fails ir the realm of That, God cannot be de fined because all definitions belong to the realm of This, and God is That. Little wonder then, that ou sages described God (Brahma) nega tively as neti, neti- not-this, not this. Every devotee can feel God, bu only to a worthy devotee does He reveal Himself completely.
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in the Article above are K S Ramr’s personal views and kashmiribhatta.in is not in any way responsible for the opinions expressed in the above article. The article belongs to its respective owner or owners and this site does not claim any right over it.
Courtesy: K S Ram and Speaking Tree ,Times of India