JIVANMUKTA : 8.

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PHYSICAL NUDITY AND MENTAL NUDITY


A Brahma Jnani or Jivanmukta need not be a genius. He need not be an eloquent speaker, orator, lecturer, or professor. But he is calm, serene, and tranquil. He is taciturn and silent. His silence is superior eloquence. He has divine wisdom and intuitive knowledge. In his presence, all doubts are cleared.

Householders make wrong judgments in deciding the nature of a Jivanmukta. They take into considerate only the external conditions of a Jivanmukta. Even educated people commit mistakes in this regard.

A Sadhu may be physically nude. He may not keep anything with him. He may use his hands as the begging bowl and live underneath a tree. He may live in a forest. Yet, he may be the greatest scoundrel; he may be the most worldly- minded man with internal and external attachments. He may dance in joy when he gets an eight-anna piece (money) for his opium-smoking. His mind may be full of distractions and disturbances. Whereas, a man may live in the bustle of a town or city. He may lead the life of a big Babu (gentalem). He may wear fashionable dress. He may cat dainties. Yet he may not have the least attachment and craving for anything. Sri Ramanauja lived amidst luxuries. There had been instances of realised persons who had elephants, horses, all royal paraphernalia without being affected in the least by these external objects. They had always Jnana Nishtha (one who is established in the Knowledge of Brahman) and Svarupa Sthiti (the natural state) amidst multifarious activities. This is integral development. This is the gist of the Bhagavad-Gita." This is the central teaching of Lord Krishna.

What is wanted is mental nudity. Jnana is purely an internal state. The external marks are no sure criterion.

The ways of a Jnani are mysterious. Only a Jivammukta can know a Jivanmukta. The description given of a Jnani in the Bhagavad-Gita and various other books is quite inadequate, incomplete, and imperfect. His state can never be imagined by the limited mind and can never be described by the finite speech. He shines in his own pristine glory.

He will sometimes appear like a Sarvajna, all-knower. He will sometimes appear like an Ajnani, ignorant man. He knows when to act like a Brahmanishtha (one who is established in the Knowledge of Brahman), and when to behave like a fool. Do not judge him. If you approach him with the proper Bhava (feeling), with faith, devotion, and spiritual thirst, he will impart the highest knowledge to you. If you approach him with a bad motive, he will behave like a mad man, and you will be deceived. Great will be your loss then.

Swami Sivananda 

To be continued  ...



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