This talk is a continuation from a previous lecture about the five subjective States in Kashmir Shaivism. This is from the 11th chapter of the book, Kashmir Shaivism: The Secret Supreme, revealed by Swami Lakshmanjoo. Here Swamiji explains the four subjective states of suṣupti (deep sleep). He then explains the subjective state of jagrat (wakefulness) in suṣupti from a higher perspective.
“Wherever they go, these enlightened souls feel the divinity of God Consciousness. Whenever they travel in the objective world, whether in name, form, space, time, whether walking or talking, whatever they may be doing, they are traveling in Absolute Consciousness.” ~Swami Lakshmanjoo
In the state of suṣupti, deep sleep, the first state of these four modes is suṣupti jāgrat, wakefulness in the state of deep sleep. In this state, you lose all impressions and thoughts and remain in absolute voidness (śūnya). While remaining in this state, you are not aware and you do not taste its joy. For example, if you have fallen into this state of sound dreamless sleep, where you travel neither in objectivity nor in impressions, and then when you emerge from that dreamless state, someone asks you, “Where were you?” You would reply (nakiñcidjño‘smi), “I do not know anything.” Sometimes upon awakening from deep sleep, you realize that while you were asleep you did not know anything; however, you do know that you were happily sleeping and that it was absolutely peaceful. This experience “I was peacefully sleeping” does not occur in suṣupti jāgrat. In the state of suṣupti jāgrat, you remember afterwards that you were experiencing nothing. Na kiñcidahamavediṣam gāḍha mūdḥo‘hamasvāpsam “I was asleep and I observed nothing.”
In our Śaivism, this state is called uditaṁ, “full of rising.” It is said to be full of rising because you have thrown away the world of impressions and have entered into the negation of impressions. You are rising out of the world of impressions toward Śiva.
The next state in deep sleep is called suṣupti svapna, “dreaming in the state of deep sleep.” While in deep sleep, you are traveling in the world of unconscious subjectivity. It is the world of subjectivity where subjectivity is absent from consciousness. In deep sleep, there is no consciousness, no awareness of subjectivity. You remain in that subjectivity but you do not know that you are in subjectivity. In the state of suṣupti svapna, however, you have some impression of being in subjectivity, there is some cognition of remaining there. In this state, you are somewhat conscious that you are traveling in subjectivity. We call this state vipulam, which means “gets nourished.” This means that the impression and awareness that you are traveling in the world of subjective consciousness gradually becomes stronger and stronger; it slowly increases.
The third state of deep sleep is called suṣupti suṣupti, deep sleep in the state of deep sleep. In this state, while you are traveling in the world of subjective consciousness, the impression, the faint idea that this is the world of subjective consciousness, remains in the background throughout, without interruption. In the state of suṣupti svapna, you also have some impression of remaining in subjectivity; however, it is an interrupted perception. Yet in both cases, in suṣupti svapna and in suṣupti suṣupti, where the impression, the faint idea that this is the world of subjective consciousness remains in the background, suṣupti is predominant. This state, in which the subtle awareness that this is the world of subjective consciousness remains in uninterrupted continuity, is called in our Śaivism śāntām. Śāntām means “peaceful.” It is so named because your awareness remains in the background in an absolutely peaceful state. In this state, there is no agitation.
The fourth state of deep sleep is suṣupti turya, the fourth mode in the state of deep sleep. In this state, you travel in the world of subjective consciousness. You are continuously aware of that subjective consciousness in the background and at the same time you experience the bliss of this state. In suṣupti suṣupti, you do not experience the real bliss of this subjective state, you experience only its peace. Here, in suṣupti turya, you experience the positive bliss of this state. Here, you are entering samādhi and yet consciousness still remains in the background. We call this state suprasannā because this is that state in which you are absolutely full of bliss, even though you are not fully aware of that bliss.
Let’s turn now and look again at the three states of the individual subjective body. The word jāgrat refers to that state wherein one is full of awareness from his own point of view, from the point of view of individual consciousness, not from the point of view of subjective consciousness. It is worldly people that call this state jāgrat (waking). Yogins, on the other hand, have a different name for it. Yogins feel that when you enter in the state of objective consciousness, you become one with objectivity. This, therefore, is not actually the state of waking. It cannot be jāgrat. It is really the state of becoming one with objectivity. For this reason, this state is called piṇḍasthaḥ, a state where you become one with whatever you perceive.
Enlightened souls (jñānīs) have yet another name for it. In this state the Being of Śiva has expanded his body of consciousness in names, forms, space, and time. These jñānīs feel the consciousness of Śiva everywhere. It is for this reason that they call this state sarvatobhadra which means “everywhere divine.” Wherever they go, these enlightened souls feel the divinity of God Consciousness. Whenever they travel in the objective world, whether in name, form, space, time, whether walking or talking, whatever they may be doing, they are traveling in Absolute Consciousness.
Next: dreaming state svapna and its meaning to Yogins and Enlightened souls (jñānīs)…
Read more on how this individual subjective body travels in each state in detail in Chapter 11 of
Kashmir Shaivism: The Secret Supreme,
revealed by Swami Lakshmanjoo
Copyright © John Hughes
Write a comment: