Category: Reflections
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Anātma Mithyātva
To understand anātma mithyātva we must first grasp what mithyā means. Vedānta distinguishes three categories of existence. At one end is asat, that which never exists, like the horns of a rabbit. Grammatically one may form a sentence about rabbit’s horns poking a bear, but such a statement is false because rabbits have no horns.…
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Bhakti – Thread of Freedom
In the pursuit of jñāna yoga, some seekers forget the importance of bhakti. Yet Vedānta reminds us that we enter the path of knowledge only through the blessings of Īśvara. In a world of conflicts and tribulations, it is vital to know what bhakti truly means. Colloquially, bhakti translates as “devotion,” but its depth is…
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Subtle Body v/s Witness
Sūkṣma Śarīra vs Ātman We often define ourselves by what we do, what we like, what we dislike, what we follow, or what we feel. In reality, these are nothing but thoughts – patterns folded into the brain, cognised and sustained as subtle imprints. These thought patterns support the body (deha), making it perform actions…
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Gross Body v/s Witness
One of the first steps in our spiritual journey towards self-realisation is to work on what is body(deha), what is soul(jīva), and what is witness(ātma). In this article, we will focus on deha and ātma, leaving jīva and ātma for a different article. Deha: The Gross Body Deha is essentially composed of our gross physical…
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Why do we need discernment?
It is said that countless lifetimes culminate in the rare gift of human birth. The sages remind us with a timeless verse: आहार-निद्रा-भय-मैथुनं च समानमेतत्पशुभिर्नराणाम् ।धर्मो हि तेषामधिको विशेषो धर्मेण हीनाः पशुभिः समानाः ॥ āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṃ ca samānam etat paśubhir narāṇām |dharmaḥ hi teṣām adhiko viśeṣo dharmeṇa hīnāḥ paśubhiḥ samānāḥ || Food, sleep, fear, and mating…