Cosmic consciousness
“Richard
Bucke describes the direct experience of the whole of
consciousness in his 1901 book, Cosmic Consciousness.
It is a description of attaining subtle realm experience,
and the "conception" of the whole of the universe. This is
coming close to the realization of the union itself with the
whole, though still somewhat short of that realization.
"Like a flash there is presented to his consciousness a
clear conception (a vision) in outline of the meaning and
drift of the universe. He does not come to believe merely;
but he sees and knows that the cosmos, which to the Self
Conscious mind seems made up of dead matter, is in fact
far otherwise - is in very truth a living presence. He
sees that instead of men being, as it were, patches of
life scattered through an infinite sea of nonliving
substance, they are in reality specks of relative death in
an infinite ocean of life. He sees that the life which is
within man is eternal; that the soul of man is as immortal
as God is; that the universe is so built and ordered that
without any pre-adventure all things work together for the
good of each and all; that the foundation principle for
the world is what we call love, and that the happiness of
every individual is in the long run absolutely certain.
The person who passes through this experience will learn
in a few minutes, or even moments, of its continuance more
than in months and years of study, and he will learn much
that no study ever taught or can teach. Especially does he
obtain such a conception of the whole, or least of
an immense whole, as dwarfs all conception,
imagination, or speculation, springing from or belonging
to ordinary Self Consciousness, such a conception as makes
the old attempts to mentally grasp the universe and its
meaning petty and even ridiculous."
The student rejoices: In
the text, Vivekachudamini (The Crest Jewel of
Discrimination), Adi Shankaracharya relates a symbolic story
of the interaction between a teacher and a student. Shankara
writes of the final joy of realization of the Absolute,
where the student cries out:
"The
ego has disappeared. I have realized my identity with
Brahman [the word for the absolute reality] and so all my
desires have melted away. I have risen above my ignorance
and my knowledge of this seeming universe. What is this
joy that I feel? Who shall measure it? I know nothing but
joy, limitless, unbounded!
"The
ocean of Brahman is full of nectar--the joy of the Atman
[the individual Self]. The treasure I have found there
cannot be described in words. The mind cannot conceive of
it. My mind fell like a hailstone into that vast expanse
of Brahman's ocean. Touching one drop of it, I melted away
and became one with Brahman. And now, though I return to
human consciousness, I abide in the joy of the Atman.
"Where is this universe? Who took it away? Has it merged
into something else? A while ago, I beheld it--now it
exists no longer. This is wonderful indeed!
"Here is the ocean of Brahman, full of endless joy. How
can I accept or reject anything? Is there anything apart
or distinct from Brahman?
"Now, finally and clearly, I know that I am the Atman,
whose nature is eternal joy. I see nothing, I hear
nothing, I know nothing that is separate from me."
OM, shanti, shanti, shanti
OM, peace, peace, peace”
Cosmic consciousness
http://swamij.com/kundalini-awakening-6.htm
