The great identity problem.

Many times, you’ll hear someone say ,” I can identify with that “

But who or what should we identify with and why ? The Vedas teach that we should understand our real and permanently situated identity.

The famous verse is from the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā, 20.108–109), spoken by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu:

jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa’
kṛṣṇera ‘taṭasthā-śakti’ ‘bhedābheda-prakāśa’
sūryāṁśa-kiraṇa, yaiche agni-jvālā-caya [1]

Translation & Meaning

• “The constitutional position (svarūpa) of the living entity is to be an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa.”
• “He is the marginal energy (taṭasthā-śakti) of Kṛṣṇa and a manifestation simultaneously one with and different from the Lord (bhedābheda-prakāśa)”, just like a molecular particle of sunshine or a spark of fire

We have passed or are passing through our childhood , our youth , our middle age , or old age . We have been or will be the same “I am ”  who is that “I am.” During our brief spell in our lives, we develop  political leanings and have strong learnings for and identify with them  .  Which  political movement  suits us  ? left leaning , right leaning, or centre ground ? Actually,  persons are forever  changing who or what they identify with , the subtle mind accepting and rejecting based around our own selfish false egos. Sometimes, someone is our friend, and sometimes the same person becomes our enemy. Sometimes, someone is very attractive as a partner to us , and a short time  later, we reject them and find someone else . The Vedas indicate that the minds   business is forever accepting and rejecting the sense objects . This world of ever fluctuating duality has to be understood for what it is . The real observer should learn to advance the consciousness to a state beyond the duality of material life the Vedas teach that process,  and Krishna speaks on how to in various ways in His Bhagavad Gita,  different strokes for different folks , but the Bhakti or devotion in love is universally taught . When we examine the disturbances that the dualities bring , we  begin to realise such states occur because of excess and our own selfish motivations and because of a misidentification of our true self . When this begins to be realised as a  factual problem ,   at that point , we can begin to climb higher in our consciousness understandings . The spiritual plane is a place to contribute real  happiness to others without selfish calculations . Ultimately, undertaking an  ultimate sacrifice of surrendring ones life to contributing  happiness directly to Divinity or Krishna and His associates. Sacrificing  everything for the sake of Krishna’s happiness without considering our  own feelings is a highly elevated  spiritual state .  You’ll be pleased to hear such sacrifices never go in vain , as you surrender to God , He reciprocates such a surrender , universally both materially and spiritually . The Vedas encourages us to dive deeper into states of consciousness and explore spiritual reality . A happier and much richer  state of mind , beyond the sense of sense of gratification , that even animals can easily obtain . The Vedas encourages us to consider the truth of who or what we are in reality .  Whether we are boy , a  girl , young , old , black , white ,  rich, poor, intelligent, or not so ?  We are  simply observing,  experiencing,  and feeling a series of imposed conditions , and we are mistakenly identified with a sureal illusory world , the Vedas say . Such conditions are imposed and thrown upon us . And are we becoming overly  affected because of false attachments and selfish unintelligent pursuits.

Let’s see what Sastra say .

nāhaṁ vipro na ca nara-patir nāpi vaiśyo na śūdro
nāhaṁ varṇī na ca gṛha-patir no vanastho yatir vā
kintu prodyan-nikhila-paramānanda-pūrnāmṛtābdher
gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ

Translation

“ ‘I am not a brāhmaṇa, I am not a kṣatriya, I am not a vaiśya or a śūdra. Nor am I a brahmacārī, a householder, a vānaprastha or a sannyāsī. I identify Myself only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the maintainer of the gopīs. He is like an ocean of nectar, and He is the cause of universal transcendental bliss. He is always existing with brilliance.’ ”

This verse , with Vedic terms for our different social status  and stages of life , offers an insight into the permanent identity of a soul in a specific relationship with Divinity. This may be a little esoteric for many to understand , but the principle is highlighted . We are not the body , not the changing mind , not a  deteriating and frustrated intelligence , but something beyond the material calculations  that force us into false identities.  This super subjective realm of spiritual consciousness is understood by sacrifice . The ultimate sacrifice ? The sacrifice of ourselves in  pure service attitude towards Divinity for his pleasure , in a cooperative , loving spirit , this should be carried out with others who have similar goals. 

The Vedas delineate many other permanent relationships with Divinity , who has many forms,  that have nothing to do with the atoms ,elements, or compounds or an ethereal ever-changing mind and intelligence that provides us our tailored and sureal illusory world.

The original consciousness that we should identify with belongs in a permanent spiritual land , which is ever new by nature and an ever enthusiastic pure love dominates our consciousness state if we enter that land .To exchange love with Radha Krishna is the topmost goal that the Vedas speaks of ……..and as the old musical song goes

Somewhere over the rainbow

Way up high

There’s a land that I heard of

Once in a lullaby…..

Maybe your fairy tale child hood imaginings have something much more to them .

Read the Vedas to find out yourself,  literally.

http://www.thevedicspectator.com

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