Asserted Topics:
What is the greatest ignorance? Who is the most ignorant of all?
Key Points:
One who does not know their own form is the most ignorant of all ignorant people.
Explanation
Herein this Vachanāmrut, Shreeji Māharāj asked the question, who is the most ignorant of all? This question is very deep. It is not a question of who is ignorant, but a question of who is the most ignorant of all.
One who possesses a virtue is called virtuous. No matter what that virtue is, whether it is spiritual or social, any type of skill or anything else. A person with ignorance is called ignorant. Under this definition, everyone is ignorant, because it is impossible to know everything. For example, a lawyer may be well versed in the rules and regulations of the country, but he may not have the same skill and understanding on picking out vegetables. A great scientist, well versed in his subject area, may have to rely on his wife to select his attire. A scholarly saint, having high spiritual status, may not know anything about social relationships. In short, everyone does not possess the knowledge of everything.
Highly intellectual persons, who are experts in their own subject areas, lack the knowledge in other subject areas. This lack of knowledge is how ignorance is defined. For greater clarity, highly intellectual people become experts in a single field and remain ignorant in other subject areas. Therefore, every person has some level of ignorance. Accepting this reality, Māharāj starts His discourse with the following question: “who is the most ignorant person among all ignorant?”
Knowledge, desire and effort are sapeksha (having regard). When one says that they have knowledge, the question arises: what is this knowledge? And when one says that they have desire, the question is: what is this desire? If the answer is Kalyan (salvation), in this condition salvation is subject. In the same way knowledge is also about something, either of God, or about soul, or about social dealings. Like knowledge, there are different kinds of ignorance i.e. about God, about social dealings, about the soul, about the path of salvation, or about materialistic things.
Shreeji Māharāj wants to show that among the different types of ignorance, which one is highest. Knowledge of different subjects have different levels of importance. Materialistic knowledge is not as important as Knowledge about God. If one does not have the knowledge of materialistic objects, he struggles to earn money. If one does not have the knowledge about themselves or their souls, then it will cause them to repeatedly go through the cycle of birth and death. Therefore, different types of knowledge have different individual values. As there is different value in different knowledge, there are also different values in ignorance. This is the essence of this Vachanāmrut. The most harmful type of ignorance is the lack of knowledge of one’s self and soul. To mention this fact, Māharāj has used words such as fool, crazy, lowly etc. to describe a person who has this level of ignorance.
As per the above discussion, what does one feel is the best and most beneficial knowledge? And opposite to that which is the most harmful and dangerous type of ignorance? On this premise, knowledge about God is the best knowledge. While knowledge of one’s self and soul are the best, knowledge about God is even better. In this condition , the ignorance of God is the most harmful and dangerous, but on the path of spirituality, the most harmful and dangerous is ignorance about ātmā.
Knowledge about God should be better than knowledge about ātmā. And ignorance about God should be more harmful than ignorance about ātmā. However, why in this Vachanāmrut, does it say that the ignorance about ātmā is the greatest ignorance of all, instead of ignorance of God?
The resolution of this doubt is the fundamental source of the spiritual path is knowledge about ātmā and its eternalness. Though the knowledge about God is the greatest of all, knowledge about the ātmā is the form of seed for Mōkṣha (ultimate salvation from the cycle of birth and death). God is most helpful and the source of bliss for the soul, but the central point to that is the soul itself. Therefore, the original source for spiritual activities is the knowledge of ātmā. Hence, on the path of Mōkṣha (ultimate salvation) knowledge of ātmā is greater than the knowledge about God.
So that it is mentioned in the Shruti that……
न वा अरे पत्युः कामाय पतिः प्रियो भवति।
आत्मनस्तु कामाय पति प्रियो भवति॥
न वा अरे जायायै कामाय जाया प्रिया भवति।
आत्मनस्तु कामाय जाया प्रिया भवति॥
न वा अरे पुत्राणां कामाय पुत्राः प्रियाः भवन्ति।
आत्मनस्तु कामाय पुत्राः प्रियाः भवन्ति॥
न वा अरे मित्रस्य कामाय मित्रं प्रियं भवति।
आत्मनस्तु कामाय मित्रं प्रियं भवति॥
न वा अरे ब्रह्मणः कामाय ब्रह्म प्रियं भवति।
आत्मनस्तु कामाय ब्रह्म प्रियं भवति॥
na vā are patyuḥ kāmāya patiḥ priyo bhavati |
ātmanastu kāmāya pati priyo bhavati ||
na vā are jāyāyai kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavati |
ātmanastu kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavati ||
na vā are putrāṇāṃ kāmāya putrāḥ priyāḥ bhavanti |
ātmanastu kāmāya putrāḥ priyāḥ bhavanti ||
na vā are mitrasya kāmāya mitraṃ priyaṃ bhavati |
ātmanastu kāmāya mitraṃ priyaṃ bhavati ||
na vā are brahmaṇaḥ kāmāya brahma priyaṃ bhavati |
ātmanastu kāmāya brahma priyaṃ bhavati ||
Hence the Shrutis say that the knowledge of Brahma is greater because it is the cause of happiness for the soul. If the existence of ātmā Tatva is being lost or useless, then the knowledge of Brahma, however great it may be, is meaningless. Scriptures have prescribed knowledge of God as the greatest. As it nourishes ātmagyān (knowledge of ātmā) when one receives knowledge about God their knowledge about their soul is being nourished. Also because of this reason, knowledge of God is prescribed as greater. This does not imply the knowledge of the soul. Yet, if the knowled of the soul is acquired from a pure sampraday (a pure traditional knowledge) then will provoke the desire, hunger for the knowledge of God. In a matter of ignorance, Māharāj has described ignorance about ātmā Gyān as the most harmful of all ignorance, which is surely perfect. Hence forth, it is said that the soul knows materialistic things through cognitive senses. But it never tries to acknowledge its ātmā. And one, who does not try to get knowledge about its soul, is considered as a most lowly and worthless soul.
Here Shuk Muni raises a doubt “Is it within one’s own power to see one’s own self? If it is so, why should the soul remain ignorant?
Here Māharāj has answered that one who engages in Satsaṅg, and frequents the company of God like Maharaj and His true saints who has the knowledge of Aatma, possesses the power to see their ātmā. As an organ, the eye accepts the appearance of objects. As an organ, the tongue accepts only taste. As an organ, the nose accepts only fragrance and odour. As an organ, the ear accepts sound. As an organ the skin accepts touch
The five materialistic objects can be experienced through five cognitive senses, in the same way God can be experienced through the mind i.e Antahkaran (inner senses mind, intelligence, consciousness, and ego), if one performs Shravan (listening), Manan (contemplation), Nidhidhyās (constant meditation) of God, then they can achieve shākshātkār (realization) of God or knowledge of God. This is further explored in Vach.G.M.31. Where Maharaj says that the knowledge of ātmā–paramātmā can be realized through manan (contemplation of knowledge of God) or after deadth.
Therefore, whatever weakness presents itself in realising God is just a result of laziness or improper guidance.
-Swaminarayan Chintan