by Viswanathan Subramanian
[box] Over the last few months, Viswanathan Subramanian has been exploring various questions with respect to the theme, ‘Ego’, based on Ramana Maharishi’s “Ulladhu Narpadhu” or Forty Verses on Reality. In this piece, he summarises the discussion.[/box]ULLADHU NARPADU’s central theme on Reality is the non-existence of the ego. When the body is taken to be the observer ‘I’, the world, which is mere names and forms appear. As the subject ‘I’ who looks at them is unreal, knowledge of the world is only ignorance. There is only consciousness. This consciousness gets interpreted as the knower and the known.
Like the English Grammar conceptualizing the First Person, the Second Person and the Third Person, there is the ego which comes as First Person and visualizes ‘you’, the Second Person and ‘he, she, it, they’, the Third Person. The ego, when examined, does not stand such a scrutiny and drops off, and the unreality of the ego is established. Hence, there is neither First Person nor Second or Third Person, but only consciousness.
Then, there is yet another trinity, which is again, the ego’s creation – the concept of Time as past, present and future. Time is a conceptual flow created by the mind. Can you catch hold of a single moment as present? If you choose to call such a minute portion as ‘present’, it co-exists with past and present and not otherwise. Hence, there is timeless consciousness only, with the concept of time being nothing but a play of imagination.
Same is the case with a place or location. A place can be talked about only from a fixed notion of the body taken to be ‘I’. Our existence without the body is perfectly established as in deep sleep where our real consciousness is there and is self-evident. When the source of ego/mind is sought, there is only the consciousnesss and nothing else remains.
When we are experientially one with the all-knowing consciousness, all actions happen on their own without egoistic intervention and any conflict.If at all, this is what is harmony, intelligence, bliss.
Viswanathan Subramanian was a banker for over 35 years. In his new retired life, he loves poring over business newspapers and journals and making notes. Spirituality also interests him, and so a good number of Sri Ramana Maharishi’s and Jiddu Krishnamurthy’s books find space in his bookshelf. He is extremely passionate about movies and music too. You are sure to find some good old English movie DVDs and an enormous collection of old mp3 Hindi and Tamil songs at his place!
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