The Cave Of Wisdom (Part One)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PROLOGUE

SEGMENT 1. THE SEED

SEGMENT 2. SEMITIC TO SPIRITUAL

SEGMENT 3. INITIATION TO UPANISHAD

SEGMENT 4. LORD OF LOVE

SEGMENT 5. THE COLUMNS

VIEW THE CAVE OF WISDOM PART 2

VIEW THE CAVE OF WISDOM PART 3

About the Author

From childhood onwards, I had a deep inclination towards spirituality. After the studies, I was fully engrossed on mastering subtle philosophies (like Vedas, Zen, Sufism, Taoism, Buddhism etc), Semitic philosophy (Judaism, Christianity, Islam etc) and Healing modalities (Reiki, Yoga, Herbalism, Naturopathy).

This study was completed at the age of 25, so I moved on to Multimedia and learned the fundamentals of computer programming. Soon, I was evolved to don many roles starting with Author, Poet, Column writer, Motivational speaker, Freelance Designer, Art director, Creative director, Scriptwriter and Director.

Even after all these metamorphose, unto now, I define myself only as a spiritual person as the greatest power in me is spirituality. It is due to the spiritual power, I could evolve to many roles. Just like the water when poured into different vessels or glasses gets a particular shape, similarly my writings, designs and filmmaking transitioned from spirituality to that particular format. In every work I did, from creativity to healing, this spiritual undercurrent can be clearly traced.

Rajesh Nanoo

Revathy

Ayyankavu Temple Road

Irinjalakuda (Post Office)

Thrissur District

Kerala, India

Pin code- 680121

Website – rajeshnanoo.com

Email - mrknowable@gmail.com

Whats App/Viber – 0091-9895-369-280

Oh Divine Agni,

Thou know everything I did,

Guide me, to prosperous path

Disdain my sinful deeds.

Oh Divine Agni,

Here is my, numerous adoration

Ishawasya Upanishad

The Upanishads are the production of the highest human wisdom and I consider them almost superhuman in conception. The study of the Upanishads has been a source of great inspiration and means of comfort to my soul. From every sentence of the Upanishads deep, original and sublime thoughts arise, and the whole is pervaded by a high and holy and earnest spirit. In the whole world there is no study so beneficial and so elevating as that of the Upanishads. The Upanishads have been the solace of my life and will be the solace of my death

Schopenhauer.

The pinnacle of wisdom that aroused in the heart of the pure, when uttered in words that shook even the highest brain at once became soft & ever fresh like himalayan dew, which made irresistible appeal in the realm of mind of the seekers, that sublime poetry became ‘Upanishads’. The knowledge portion of Vedas encrypted in Upanishads is known by the name of Vedanta. Upanishads does not bear tags of any religion, race, cast, creed, time and space as its ideology surpassed everything known, knowable and unknown. The word Upanishad derived from three Sanskrit terms (Upa, Ni, Shad) itself elucidate for what it stands for and what it bestows.

Upa has two meanings – very near, very clear. Ni - means below, (some masters interpret it as discipline, decision). Shad has three meanings – Aim, destruction and dwelling (in it). Wisdom cannot be created; it can only be discovered in heart. That which is very near to mortal is wisdom/bliss, but due to ignorance mortals think it is far. This veil will be dropped if they remain so close to wisdom. It is not an easy thing to do, for the mentality of the mortals need drastic changes. After fathoming in diversified knowledge, the intellect fails to comprehend truth and submits, then wisdom opens its treasure. This submission is sitting below. Remember water flows only to those places that are below. Submission is possible only when seeker is locked in one Aim – ‘to know truth’. As the goal is fully set, wisdom illumines from every corner. In this awakening, ignorance gets destroyed, the truth hidden in the innermost cave of heart blossoms and seeker attains immortality and bliss.

Prologue

'What will be the good of studying the Vedas?' Premananda asked.

'It will kill superstition,' Swami Vivekananda said.

Teachings of Rishis are subtle and abstract, they are hard to comprehend, and so reading it deeply and getting fair ideas of the teachings is an uphill task. The intention to write a book like this came from a desire to act as bridge between the Upanishad teachings and the learners. Hence through this book I have tried to cover most of the core Upanishad teachings.

The book is divided mainly into two divisions and further subdivided into small fragments under a main heading. Among the main division, the first section contains articles that are directly connected to the Upanishad teaching while the second section is indirectly connected to Upanishads. It means that the second division contains a set of articles, which cannot be perceived as direct teachings of the Upanishad, but its base or the undercurrent is gushed from the great sublime ocean of Vedic ideas. If any idea contained in the book does not match with Upanishads then the readers should disregard it instantly. The good impact got from the book is surely theirs and the follies contained in the book are mine, so blame only me for that.

I am not coming from a community that has English as their mother tongue nor have I mastered the language from academies, so the grammatical errors may have occurred. I have tried my level best to keep it checked but still it may arise here and there. I was not focused on making the book completely error-free from grammars because of my mindset. The ancient teaching which I have tried to interpret and present in this book cannot be expressed fully in any language, so the words however great it may be are failures. If language itself is a failure to express the truth, then the realm of words will be narrower.

Giving more importance to words and language will be like giving more importance to attires than the heart and intellect of the person. A person who is well dressed does not mean his intellect is very shrewd; similarly a person who is not well dressed cannot be regarded as poor intellect. Nevertheless a balance of both is needed. If the dress is good then it is soothing to eyes and gives a pleasant feeling. Words are like those attires so I tried to make it pleasant as possible but gave emphasis on presenting the concepts. After all it is the concept that matters than the words added on to express it. Words are only vehicles that present the concept, so if the vehicle is in a good condition and well maintained then the journey will be smooth.

I am not attempting to write a bigger preface as the ideas that can be written here is already presented throughout the articles, so if I write them here then it will be repetition. But I have to confess that repetition can be traced in many articles. It happened mainly due to two reasons, one, each concept should be said from beginning to end, so it has to be presented in a systematic way. Then the concepts have to be repeated as to suit the context. All concepts in the Upanishad philosophy are interlinked with each other so it will be impossible to present one without stating the previous concept.

Second reason is, some points should be emphasized more than the others, because it becomes easy to comprehend when repeated. The teachings of Upanishad philosophy are like that of a flowing river. It is said that you cannot drink twice from the same river as the water is flowing; similarly by each readings you will get different ideas than it was previously read. So the concept that is repeated in the book may not be that of the same kind but it has the same substance beneath it.

I am thankful to those who have helped me to write this book and edit it in a better way. Anantha Krishnan KK helped me, by giving clarity on the topics which I had doubt. Subramaniyan, Paola Mannaro and Rekha Shenoy have helped in editing the book and Nick Varghese gave me pictures included in the book. I thank all of them with bottom of my heart and humbly submit the book in front of the readers in the hope that it will be beneficial for them in their spiritual path in whichever way they moves on.

Let there be light in life.

One

The Seed

1.Acknowledgment

Excuse my foolery in trying to express the inexpressible

Omnipotent has been always unknown. Mind and words have failed to reach it. We can only explain a shadow of real truth. Reasoning is necessary to understand the point intellectually but in reality, truth transcends reasoning.  Thus the matter of the fact is, truth cannot be reached or preached through reasoning. Books can neither reveal the absolute truth nor seers or prophets can bestow enlightenment. Positive and negative arguments cannot establish the truth.

Similarly there is nothing new to teach, because there is nothing new. The truth is old and new and will be fresh in the future also; because truth can never be explained. Whatever explained in such a context will be an utter failure that is the reason why truth always remains fresh and unchanged in past, present and future.

The truth comes into him who knows the secret of it or has realized it. Only through experience we can comprehend this. Thus through this book I am not trying to establish anything, but to remove the idea that truth can be understood by the senses, mind and intellect. My mission is to express this message loudly and clearly.

I do not hold any credit to any concept said in this book, because there is not even a single idea of mine.  The seers and master’s whispered in my ears each word or every idea expressed in this book. What I did is, I have assimilated, interpreted and combined all these ideas according to my experience, in a particular format so as to understand it for others.

I have translated the Upanishad verses/mantras and also the 25 preceptors of Guru Dattaterya in this book as per my understanding of them. If anybody has benefited or understood anything from this book; it is due to their words and whatever the reader didn’t understand nor got benefited, those words and ideas are mine. Such blames should be credited to my account and all good things bestowed should be debited into the lineage of my master.

2. Salutations

Om, vaang me manasi pratishthitaa

Mano me vaachi pratishthitam

Aaveeraaveerma edhi 

vedasya ma aanisthah

Shrutam me maa prahaaseer 

Anenaadheetena Ahoraatraan samdadhaami 

Ritam vadishyaami

Satyam vadishyaami 

Tanmaamavatu 

Tadvaktaaramavatu

Avatu maam avatu vaktaaram 

Avatu vaktaaram

Om, shantih, shantih, shantih!

Meaning:

Om, Let my speech be in tune with the mind;

Let Mind also be in tune with speech.

O Self-effulgent One, reveal Thyself to me.

(Let speech and mind) be the conduit of

the Vedas (meaning of Vedas) to me.

The things learned by hearing

should not depart from me.

Let I absorb day and night

in the thoughts learned as such.

I speak only that is upright,

I speak only that is true,

Let Thou (Brahman) protect me

Let Thou (Brahman) protect (my) teacher

Let Thou protect me

Let Thou protect teacher

Let Thou protect teacher

Om Peace, Peace, Peace

To the Rishis

All Gurus (masters or leaders) are one and are fragments and radiations of god, the universal guru. The world is not a child's play- and great men are those who build highways for others with their heart's blood.

Swami Vivekananda

To the Guru, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa

I bow down to Ramakrishna, who establish the religion, embodying in himself the reality of all religions and being thus the foremost of divine incarnation.

Swami Vivekananda

I regard Sri Ramakrishna as embodiment of god or the one who Upanishad proclaimed as Prajapathi. He never had an ego. He cannot do anything by his own will. He considered himself as an instrument of the God. He used to call God as mother. All the words spoken from the lips and deeds done through human body of Sri Ramakrishna was not his but of the beloved Mother. As Swami Vivekananda rightly put, ‘The ego of Ramakrishna was never present there and what remains is the ego of god’. That is the reason why Swami Vivekananda admired and adored him as the great incarnation the world ever saw because he was the sum total of all incarnations.

To Swami Vivekananda

Swami Vivekananda is a great soul who came and passed away like a hurricane in the world. His words were electrifying and they were in tune with Upanishads (philosophical portion of Vedas). While addressing a letter to the parliament of religious in America, one of the scholars that country introduced Swamiji as follows: Here is a man who is more learned than all our learned professors put together. As Sri Ramakrishna said Swami Vivekananda is Sahasraram (thousand petal lotus) while other scholars are one petal lotus. He is a sun and others are candles of light.

Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda are not two personalities they are actually one. There is no difference between them. Albert Einstein famous words about Gandhi was Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this walked the earth in flesh and blood this statement is best fitted to them (Swamiji and Thakur) rather than Mahatma Gandhi.

To Ramana Maharishi

He is the great guru, with his life shown how to lead a serene life in silence. He was not taught by anyone, nor he taught any one, but his words spoken rarely became subtle wisdom for seekers. The main concept he used to say was to check the seeker - Who Am I? This concept is the teaching of Aithareya Upanishad it also ask the same question ‘Koham’ (Who Am I). All three states are illusionary, only the Supreme I is the real. This is the teaching of Mandukya Upanishad, while giving the answer to Who Am I, Ramana Maharishi used to throw light on this Upanishad teaching.

To my Master, T Shivashankaran

Upanishads are highest and subtlest philosophy the human brain can comprehend. It cannot be understood in its true form, if a great master does not elucidate it. The master has to comprehend them in its subtle format. Upanishad philosophy is not that much lucid so that any trespassers can crash-land into it. Intelligent or sharp brain cannot comprehend it. Many lives sacrificed to Tapas (austerity) are needed even to get a bit of it. In short it is the grace, not the brainpower that avails the seeker to open the door of Upanishad Philosophy. By grace I was gifted with a Master, sitting at his feet I learned Upanishad one by one. He used to say the abstract truth in a colloquial language but at the same time it was nourished with modern scientific explanation. I never heard such a pinpointing, bombarding explanations from anybody I met in my life. It was he who dispelled my ignorance, opened the heart and turned the intellect inward to the major (Ten) Upanishad. That elucidation quenched my doubts forever and made me unmoved from ancient concepts. By his graceful blessing I was able to lead life aligned with Upanishad ideals. I don’t have an iota of doubt to confess that, I was able to write this book mainly due to the vast interpretations that spell out from his repertoire.

Victory to all great seers

Om saha naavavatu,

Sahanau bhunaktu

Saha veeryam karavaavahai

Tejasvi naavadheetamastu 

Maa vidvishaavahai

Om shantih, shantih, shantih!

Meaning:

Om, Let both of us (teacher & student) get protected. 

Let that nourish (growth from wisdom) both of us.

Let us attempt together for attaining vigor (boldness)

Let the wisdom imparted be illumined for us

Let us not repel (or hate) each other (while learning this knowledge)

Om Peace, Peace, Peace.

3. REAL RAMAKRISHNA

If there is a man ever