chapter 12 – ātmā

Swamiji introduces this chapter by summarizing the previously discussed concepts: sādhana catuṣṭayam (the four-fold qualifications), śarīratrayam (the three-fold bodies), avasthātrayam (the three states of experience), and kośa pañcakam (the five personality layers). All of these previously discussed concepts fall under the category of anātmā (the material nature or non-self). Chapter 11 shifts the focus to ātmā, the independent conscious principle which is entirely distinct from the material anātmā.

the insentient nature of the three bodies (jaḍam) From previous analyses, it is established that the gross body, the subtle body, and the causal body are all made of matter (pañca bhūtāni or their subtle/causal equivalents). Because they are material in nature (bhautikam), they are considered jaḍam (inert).

According to vedantic definition, for something to be inert, it must neither possess consciousness of its own (caitanya guṇakam) nor have the capacity to produce or generate consciousness (caitanya janakam). Therefore, all three bodies—including the mind, which is part of the subtle body—are intrinsically insentient. They do not have their own consciousness.

borrowed consciousness and the lender (ātmā) This logical conclusion presents a seeming contradiction: if the bodies and mind are inherently insentient, why do we experience them as sentient and alive?

Swamiji resolves this by explaining that the śarīratrayam enjoys a borrowed consciousness (āgantuka caitanyam). He gives the example of a deeply impoverished person who arrives at a function wearing magnificent, expensive ornaments. It is obvious to anyone that since the person owns nothing, the ornaments must be borrowed makeup. Similarly, the bundle of chemicals that makes up our physical and subtle bodies only appears sentient because of borrowed consciousness.

If the śarīratrayam is borrowing consciousness, there must be an original lender. This lender is the fourth factor in the human personality, completely distinct from the gross, subtle, and causal bodies. This original lender of consciousness is ātmā. Just as invisible electricity flows through a bulb and filament to make them visibly glow with light, the invisible ātmā makes the visible bodies aglow and alive with consciousness.

Swamiji quotes the opening of the Kena Upanishad, which asks about this very principle that directs the mind and senses:

केनेषितं पतति प्रेषितं मनः केन प्राणः प्रथमः प्रैति युक्तः । केनेषितां वाचमिमां वदन्ति चक्षुः श्रोत्रं क उ देवो युनक्ति ॥१॥ kēnēṣitaṃ patati prēṣitaṃ manaḥ kēna prāṇaḥ prathamaḥ praiti yuktaḥ | kēnēṣitāṃ vācamimāṃ vadanti cakṣuḥ śrōtraṃ ka u dēvō yunakti || 1 ||

features of ātmā Swamiji outlines six fundamental features that define ātmā:

  1. caitanya svarūpaḥ: ātmā is of the nature of consciousness itself. It is a non-material, spiritual principle. If it were matter, it would also be jaḍam and would have to borrow consciousness from elsewhere, making it a borrower rather than the original lender.
  2. svatantraḥ: ātmā is an independent entity. Consciousness does not depend on matter for its production, nor does it depend on matter for its existence.
  3. nirguṇaḥ: ātmā is completely attributeless. All known properties and attributes (śabda, sparśa, rūpa, rasa, and gandha) belong to matter. Because ātmā is non-material, it is free from all physical and chemical properties.
  4. nitya: ātmā is eternal. Because it does not depend on the śarīratrayam for its existence, ātmā continues to survive even when the material bodies collapse and perish (just as electricity survives when a bulb fuses). Time is a property of the material universe; consciousness is beyond time (kālātītaḥ). Swamiji quotes a verse to illustrate this eternal, unconditioned nature:

सान्द्रानन्दावबोधात्मकमनुपमितं कालदेशावधिभ्यां निर्मुक्तं नित्यमुक्तं निगमशतसहस्रेण निर्भास्यमानम् । sāndrānandāvabōdhātmakamanupamitaṃ kāladēśāvadhibhyām nirmuktaṃ nityamuktaṃ nigamaśatasahasrēṇa nirbhāsyamānam |

  1. sarvagataḥ (or sarvavyāpī): ātmā is all-pervading. Since time and space are interconnected, ātmā, being beyond time, is also unconditioned by space. It is not located solely within a single body but exists behind and between all bodies, whether it is the tiny body of an ant or the massive body of an elephant.
  2. ekaḥ (or advitīyaḥ): ātmā is non-dual. Since it is the single consciousness principle behind all the various bodies in creation, ātmā is only one.

Swamiji briefly notes that modern scientific pioneers in quantum mechanics (such as Erwin Schrodinger, Max Planck, and George Wald) have made statements that closely mirror this vedantic vision, recognizing consciousness as a singular, fundamental reality that exists outside the parameters of space and time, from which matter itself is derivative.

ātmā – anātmā viveka The first major step in vedantic study is to clearly understand this distinction between the non-material ātmā and the material anātmā. The word ātmā literally translates to “Self” or “I”. Therefore, the spiritual seeker must actively train themselves to claim ātmā as their true identity and to systematically dis-identify from the material anātmā.

Swamiji explains that our worldly “bio-data” (date of birth, bodily features, social roles) is entirely based on the śarīratrayam. While this worldly bio-data is necessary for worldly transactions, the seeker must internally claim their real, spiritual bio-data: aham caitanya svarūpaḥ, aham svatantraḥ, aham nirguṇaḥ, aham nitya, aham sarvagataḥ, and aham ekaḥ.

dṛk dṛśya viveka (the methodology of disowning anātmā) To assist in this training of switching one’s identification from the material to the spiritual, scriptures provide a specific methodology called dṛk dṛśya viveka. This methodology is based on two fundamental laws of vedanta:

  • Law 1: I am different from whatever I experience. I am the experiencer (the subject), and the world, the body, and the mind are objects of my experience. Because they are experienced objects, I cannot be them. I am ever the observer, and never the observed.
  • Law 2: I, the experiencer, am free from the attributes of the experienced objects. All known attributes belong to the material objects being experienced (the anātmā). As the subject and knower of these attributes, I myself am completely free of them.

By continuously applying these two laws, a seeker recognizes that they are the attributeless, eternal consciousness. Swamiji concludes the chapter by chanting the first verse of Adi Shankaracharya’s Nirvana Shatakam, which beautifully captures the essence of this dis-identification:

मनोबुद्ध्यहंकारचित्तानि नाहं न च श्रोत्रजिव्हे न च घ्राणनेत्रे । न च व्योमभूमिः न तेजो न वायुः चिदानंदरूपः शिवोऽहं शिवोऽहम् ॥ १ ॥

manōbuddhyahaṅkāracittāni nāham na ca śrōtrajivhē na ca ghrāṇanētrē | na ca vyōmabhūmiḥ na tējō na vāyuḥ cidānandarūpaḥ śivō’haṃ śivō’ham || 1 ||