Whenever I come to Guntur, my brothers come to meet me and we discuss various spiritual topics. All my friends treat me as their elder brother. Though they are busy, they come only because of love and affection for me. As the conversations revolve around spirituality, I enjoy them very much. But my wife is worried because I spend the available free time in these talks and is concerned that she misses her time with me. My son’s concern is that I am not training him in new Martial Art techniques.
Yesterday Charan came to meet me. The conversation was about usual topics like kids, education etc. Meanwhile he asked a startling question.
“Do you know anything about Timelessness?”
This is typical of Charan. Though he seems to be normal outwardly, there runs a spiritual channel endlessly in his mind. He routinely asks such questions.
I told him to frame his question properly.
Charan asked, “I can’t imagine the concept of timelessness. Is there a timeless state? Is that even possible? If at all it is possible, what do we feel in that state? If there is no time, the world doesn’t exist, does it? Please explain this concept.”
“How can you understand timelessness with your mind?” I asked him.
“Why not? Everything should be understood by mind, Isn't it so?” He replied
“There is no such rule in the world. There are many concepts that we cannot understand. There are many planes above our mind. For example, do you have any time sense in deep sleep?” I have utilized the brahmastra given by Ramana Maharshi.
After some thought he said ‘No’.
I said, “That is the state you have asked about. If there is a mind, there is time. No mind…no time. So mindlessness is timelessness.” You should get a doubt here. What about mentally retarded people? They don’t have a mind. Does that mean they are in a timeless state?
The answer is again a big no. Their minds travel downwards from the level of an ordinary mind. Their state can also be called a timeless state. But that is filled with darkness and confusion. Yogis rise above their minds by overcoming their lower tendencies. They can see everything clearly. Their world is filled with light. Our time coordinates will not work in their plane. Your questions will be automatically resolved once you step into that world.”
Charan said, “I am not able to imagine that state.”
I said, “It’s natural. How can you imagine a mindless state with your mind? It’s not possible. You cannot imagine or understand it. But you can stay in that state if you can. You can align yourself to that state. But you cannot imagine that state sitting here. Can you imagine the climate of the Himalayas sitting here in Guntur? Same is the case with timelessness. Do you understand?”
“So do we need any sixth and seventh senses to understand that state?” Charan asked.
“No. This is called ‘a state beyond senses’ in Vedanta. They also call it turiya state. It cannot be experienced by any of the five senses. Kathopanishad has explained this state as:
yatō vācō nivārtantē aprāpya manasā saha
Meaning: The state, which cannot be caught by any of the five senses including mind.
Charan is not convinced yet. His mind is not accepting my logic. He is thinking whether my answer is right or not. I can understand his mind. He thinks that if one develops sixth sense, timelessness can be understood.
To relax him, I said, “Okay, try to develop the new senses you are talking about. Then you will understand the truth of my statement. No matter how many senses you develop, they all stay in a particular time frame. Timeless state is beyond senses and mind. These are not my words but of the Vedas, Upanishads and Yogic science. Rather than arguing and trying to understand with your mind, you have to find a way to go beyond your mind and step into the senseless state by yourself. Then all your doubts will be resolved by direct experience. Till then you have to remain in confusion.”
“Is that so?” saying this Charan left.
All rights reserved. This article has been translated by Sowjanya D, which was originally posted in teluguyogi.net on February 9, 2010. The content or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express permission of the publisher.