The True Self and Its Realization Katha and Brihad-Aranyaka Upanishads

Death as the Teacher In Katha Upanishad, Nachiketa raises the question: “what happens after death?” “When a person dies, there arises this doubt: ‘He still exists,’ say some; ‘he does not’ say others. I want you to teach me the truth. (pp ) Nachiketa asks this question of his guru, whose name is Yama – the god of death. “...the secret of death is hard to know” - Yama (p. 73)

Implications Only “death” can unravel the mystery of death. “I can have no greater teacher than you.” – Nachiketa (p. 73) Death is the greatest teacher of all since the mystery of death is the mystery of life itself. To understand death is to understand life. Why? Death as a teacher facilitates inquiry into the most fundamental question of all....

What am I?

The Self The answer to the question “what happens after death?” depends on what the self is. What is this “self” that passes into death? This “self” is that which passes into death having passed through life itself. Hence, to understand the “self” is to understand life itself. The mystery of life and death is contained in the self.

Central to the teachings of the Upanishads is the distinction between a true enduring self (called atman) and a false non- enduring self that is identified with the body-mind

“There are two selves, the separate ego and the indivisible Atman. When one rises above I and me and mine, the atman is revealed as one’s real self.” – Katha (p. 91)

The Self as the Body-Mind Katha and Brihadaranyaka Upanishads teach that there is a concept of self as the body-mind: a mixture of thoughts, images, ideas, feelings, sensations, sights, sounds, tastes, etc. When the feeling of cold arises, the separate self thinks “I am cold.” When the feeling of what is unpleasant arises, it thinks “I am unhappy.” When the feeling of what is pleasant arises, it thinks “I am happy.”

Separate and Non-Enduring Self This self as body-mind is a separate self. Having identified itself with “this” or “that” thought, perception, or sensation, it feels itself to be a fragment, separate from the whole. It is a non-enduring self. The objects with which it identifies itself are non-enduring or impermanent.

Separate Self is a Seeker As a separate and non-enduring self, the mind-body is always seeking to complete or fulfill itself through seeking fulfillment or completion through the acquisition of an object, activity, state of mind, or relationship. The acquisition of these things produces feelings of fulfillment or completion, which the body-mind calls “happiness.”

Always Seeking Objects The separate self is always seeking objects for fulfillment because – The sense of fulfillment is temporary since the objects that produce it are temporary. – so the separate self moves on to a new object, activity, state of mind, or relationship, – having formed the belief that the happiness it seeks is caused by these things. So the separate self lives a life of seeking objects, punctuated by brief moments of happiness when the seeking temporarily comes to an end.

The Atman “The all-knowing Self was never born, nor will it die. Beyond cause and effect, this Self is eternal and immutable. When the body dies, the Self does not die.” – Katha (p. 78) “Hidden in the heart of every creature exists the Self (atman).” – Katha (p. 79) “The supreme Self is beyond name and form, beyond the senses inexhaustible, without beginning, without end, beyond time, space, and causality, eternal, immutable.” – Katha (pp )

The Atman is Awareness “The ruler supreme, the inner Self of all... changeless amidst the things that pass away, pure consciousness in all who are conscious.” – Katha (p. 88) “The Self, pure awareness, shines as the light within the heart.” – Brihad (p. 109)

The Self is Non-Dual The Self is beyond all dualities: “the duality of subject and object” (Katha, p. 76), “pain and pleasure” (Katha, p. 77), “name and form” (Katha, p. 82), “good and evil” (Brihad, p. 111) It is “the state of unity” and “indivisible Self” (Katha, p. 85), and utterly “formless” (p. 90). Therefore, the Self is not a thing or object. It is the unlimited and ever-present awareness in which in which all things emerge and pass away.

The Self is in All Things Since the Self is not a thing, it is possible for it to be in everything. The Brihad-Aranyaka Upanishad repeats that the Self is the inner essence of all things in the world, and all things that are loved, including the gods, are loved on account of the Self. It is the Self that is loved in all things. Brihad, pp

Atman is Knowable Atman is not knowable through the mind. The mind knows objects, but atman, pure awareness, is not an object. It is the larger consciousness in which objects arise and pass away. (Katha p. 76) However, since we are aware or present to ourselves, the imprint, echo, or reflection of atman is found in the mind. Atman is reflected in everything as the witnessing background of all experience. It is the knowing present in the individual knower and object known. – Katha (p. 89)

Meditation The Katha and Brihad-Aranyaka Upanishads emphasize that Atman can only be revealed and meditation facilitates this revelation. “The wise, realizing through meditation the timeless Self, beyond all perception, hidden in the cave of the heart...those who know that they are neither body nor mind but the immortal Self, the divine principle of existence.” – Katha (p. 77)

Meditation (Dhyana) Meditation is described as the activity of stilling the thought forms of the mind. Guru Patanjali described this as the essence of yoga: “chitta vritti nirodhah.” cf. Katha, p.91.

As turbulent lake waters obscure the realization of what is beneath the surface of the lake water, the activity of the mind obscures the realization of atman.

In meditation, concentration on a single object facilitates the temporary dissolution of mental obstacles and the realization that the I is not the body-mind but that which is aware of the body-mind.