The Essential Pilgrimage And Holy Company-Part III

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The most essential pilgrimage is the pilgrimage to the shrine of one's own heart. For one who does not make this inner pilgrimage in daily life, there is no shrine anywhere. In his 'Atmabodha', Shankaracharya says: 'He who, renouncing all activities, worships in the sacred and stainless shrine of Atman, which is independent of time, place, and distance; which is present everywhere; which is the destroyer of heat and cold, and the other opposites; and which is the giver of eternal happiness, becomes all-knowing and all-pervading and attains, hereafter, Immortality"

The word 'shrine' in the text also means a holy place (tirtha). The allusion is to the pilgrimage of pious devotees to a holy place. There are certain disadvantages associated with holy places. As they may be situated at a great distance, pilgrimage may entail physical labour and suffering. The merit of a pilgrimage may be slight because of the in-auspiciousness of the time. The comfort of the pilgrims may be disturbed by the weather. Robbers, thieves, or unscrupulous priests often give them trouble. Further, the merit accruing from a pilgrimage is not everlasting.

However the worshipper in the sacred shrine of Atman is free from all these disadvantages and obstacles. Communion with Atman bestows upon the soul immortality and Eternal Bliss. The Mahabharata describes Atman as the real sacred river, bathing in which the soul becomes free of impurities: 'The river of Atman is filled with the water of self-control; truth is its current, righteous conduct its banks, and compassion its waves. O son of Pandu, bathe in its sacred water; ordinary water does not purify the inmost soul.'

In the hymn 'Realizing the Kashi Within,' Shankaracharya says:

'The cessation of all mental activities is the supreme peace—that is the holiest of all holy places of pilgrimage, the Manikarnika (in me); the ever-flowing stream of knowledge is the pure primeval Ganga (in me); (thus) I am the Kashika, of the form of pure consciousness of Self. That Paramatman, the One Existence-Knowledge-Bliss, upon which is superimposed this magic (of creation), and in which the universe of moving and unmoving objects shines as the sportive creation of the mind—I am that Kashika, of the form of pure consciousness of Self. . .

This body is the Kashikshetra; the all-encompassing Knowledge is the Ganga, the Mother of the three worlds; our devotion and faith is Gaya; the devout meditation on the feet of the Guru makes the Prayag; the Lord of the universe is the Absolute, the Inner-Self, the Witness of everyone's mind. If all these dwell in my own body, what other places of pilgrimage again can there be?"

Describing the true significance of pilgrimage, Swami Vivekananda says:

'Know it for certain that there is no greater tirtha (holy spot) than the body of man. Nowhere else is the Atman so manifest as here. That car of Jagannatha that you see is but a concrete symbol of this corporeal car. You have to behold the Atman in this car of the body. Haven't you read, 'Know the Atman to be seated on the chariot', etc., 'All the gods worship the Vamana (the Supreme Being in a diminutive form) seated in the interior of the body'?

The sight of the Atman is the real vision of Jagannatha. And the statement, 'Seeing the Vamana on the car, one is no more subject to rebirth,' means that if you can visualize the Atman which is within you, and disregarding which you are always identifying yourself with this curious mass of matter, this body of yours—if you can see that, then there is no more rebirth for you"

Spiritual Guidelines for Making Pilgrimage

About the author

Swami Adiswarananda (1925-2007) was the Minister of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Centre, New York. His books include 'Meditation & Its Practices' and 'The Vedanta Way to Peace and Happiness', among others. The present article, hitherto unpublished, was found among his papers at the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Centre, New York and was sent to us by Swami Yuktatmananda, the present Minister of the Centre.