Culmination of the Quest: Those Seven Steps to Self Discovery

Email

Whatsapp

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Copy link

When an attempt is made to learn this Knowledge without a Master or His Grace, ambiguities and personal blocks creep in. Where exactly is the block? How does one address it and cross over without taking recourse to temporary solutions in the nature of psychiatric help, drugs, 'developing' the personality and striking 'deals' with the Almighty? Reflections such as these led to the need for personalisation and then the Seven Steps evolved.

The very nature of this Knowledge is at once very subtle and abstract. Most often a flawed identification of who 'I am' is the root cause of all problems. When rooted in misconceptions, Peace, Harmony and Bliss is a distant dream.

In its exposition of the path as in the Vedas, the first book kindles interest and paves the way for Viveka (Knowledge) and Vairagya (Renunciation). It Sharanagati (Surrender) can Quappen at this point, then the "Culmination of the Quest" serves a higher purpose - it will be an experience of true exhilaration, It is the joy of having paved the path for this quest. Ananda!

But despite all this, desires and doubts can surface. It is not such a click of a button to realise one's Absolute nature as eternal. It may be necessary for the reader to course the Seven Steps of the Quest.

All the search engines and web crawlers tell you everything about the world and perhaps even your own credentials. But they have no clue as to who you really are! Those Seven Steps - signposts as it were, help you find the way to locate your true coordinates.

Culmination of the Quest, as I just mentioned, has its signposts at different levels of awareness. You zero in on 'yourself only to transcend and then to merge in the Totality. Only then does the journey find its true culmination. One's change in perspective to the world feels like an awakening now! One is an equanimous witness to the same world which one complained of earlier. At this point in time, you feel that it was indeed just a click of a button away - it just happened and you had no role to play....

The magnificent realisation about yourself, the world around and the meaning of God may dawn at the sunset of life. But before you even begin to savour its beauty, the curtains are down. There is regret deep within, that you could have pursued these meanings much earlier. Alas! You cannot unwind the time machine to early adulthood.

You may conceptualise God as an entity somewhere out there in the heavens but without knowing what and where that heaven is, God will be a part-time routine and not a full-time ecstasy. Fair enough you cannot dedicate your all to someone when you are not even sure about who or what it is; besides, you have full-time responsibilities, needs and desires. If God indeed figures somewhere in your scheme of things it is most often for fear, favour or helplessness. Hence, at any given point in time, there are believers, non-believers and fence-sitters, switching between modes as and when convenient!

Life has its challenges and setbacks at every turn. Further complicating matters, you think you have to retire and sacrifice all your personal interests to know and please God. If not, there is a fear of incurring wrath. But you are not ready for all this yet. There is internal conflict.

Self-help books and motivational influencers seek to correct outer layers of personality and behaviour to tailor a more effective and efficient you for this world. It may have its palliative uses in addressing the internal conflict.

In this context, my first book "In Quest of Self" talks about perceiving the unlimited divinity in all of us. This book reveals that which has to be known and lived not through cosmetic changes to the outer layers but by seeking the real you once and for all.

The scriptures have paved the way for this quest. The essence of the scriptures is not to know some God or some entity out there in the heavens, but to introduce your Absolute nature to yourself. If these thoughts are ingrained earlier on in life, one can lead a life without doubts, confusion and conflicts.