Consciousness Acquires a Body.

“ I am Not the Body. The Body isn’t Mine.”

‘Who am I’, then ?

Fascination and pride (abhiman/ अभिमान) with the body is fruitless. All things that come with the body’s presence; subtle aspects as suffering, happiness, desires, attachments and gross/material objects as name, fame, designation, money authority, are equally fruitless. Meaning, all that which makes a person swoon with pride- ‘I did it’, ‘this achievement is mine’, ‘ I am happy/ sad’, is fruitless.

The body is left here on this dimension as it dies, so does the body- related pride of gross material possessions. The subtle body goes. It leaves with the essence of the way life was lived i.e. actions were done(karm). It would be the essence of good and bad deeds, lessons learnt, unlearnt, left-over desires and attachments. The subtle body returns- becoming the cause and content- as another physical body. Why? Because the desires and attachment were still present. The cycle of body -to- next body ( transmigration) continues till transcendence takes place.

So, the fascination with the body-related aspects, themselves become the cause for the next body.

The knowledge to be gained is; the body and its aspects- gross or subtle, isn’t yours. Had the body been yours- you could keep it as long as you wanted, as you wanted, control its functioning, aging, sickness & retain the mental freshness. You could have control over its emotions and attachments.

Had the body been yours, you could fulfill all its desires and feel wholesome, complete, sorted. But you still chase peace and happiness. However, the body isn’t yours. It keeps changing and all aspects related to the body- fame, money, health, wealth, desires, wishes, relationships mental formations, keep changing. Body has its own rules ( niyam) of living, functioning, and departing. Craving, desiring, attaching.

If you are not the body. Who are you then?

YOU are different from the body. YOU are the Pure Consciousness (Chaitanya). And that which knows the body’s subtle and gross changes taking place, which witnesses these movements occurring in the self. That Consciousness is YOU; the unchanging, permanent, eternal Consciousness. The Supreme which notices the changing, temporary world of yours. YOU are ever-present, eternal and pure. Your body is temporary.

Pure Consciousness doesn’t demand things of you. Only the body and its pride demands; this is dehabhiman- ( दहाभिमान) born of the ego-.. When one rises above dehabhiman ( body and its pride), then the self.. gains closeness to the Pure Consciousness- which is the natural state of peace & contentment. Do you notice, all your craving इस for peace & contentment? And dehabhiman (दहाभिमान) has consistently failed to provide it?

One can choose to meditate on: ‘I am not the body. The body isn’t mine.’ This will unpack the deeper meaning.

( Urmila Rao: Emotional Wellness Counsellor, based in Dubai, UAE. Email: hellokarmicwellness@gmail.com)