Who Am I?

by Sarvapriyananda

deep sleep is a state of total blankness and the term used for this in Vedanta is pragyanaghanam. It means a mass of consciousness. All the external world, dreams - everything is pushed into an indistinguishable mass. The distinctions are still there, but in a potential state, because the next moment when you wake up everything is back again. Your body and mind, and the same people around you all come back.

So consciousness is apart from the waking world and the waking body, consciousness is apart from the dream world and the dream body, and consciousness is apart from the deep sleep blankness. It is in and through all of them. States are coming and going and the ego associated with each state is coming and going, but the consciousness is illumining all of them. You are that consciousness.

The Seventh Mantra of the Mandukya Upanishad Naantahpragyam na bahishhpragyam nobhayatahpragyam na pragyaanaghanam na pragyam naapragyam, adrishhtam avyavahaaryam agraahyam alakshanam achintyam avyapadeshyam ekaatmapratyayasaaram prapanchopashamam shaantam shivam advaitam chaturthammanyante sa aatmaa sa vigyeyah The Self is not the dreamer, not the waker, not an in-between state, not the deep sleeper, not the all-knower and not unconscious. The Self is invisible, not transactable, not graspable, cannot be inferred, beyond thought and beyond language. It is the essence of the “I-sense”, the quiescence of the universe, peace itself, bliss itself, nondual and thought to be the fourth. That is the Self to be realized.

Pure consciousness is not an object which can be manipulated, seen, felt and used. But remember - it is the ground and the source of all vyavhaara.