The Ultimate Cognition of the Paramahamsa
न दण्डं न शिखां न यज्ञोपवीतं न चाच्छादनं चरति परमहंसो न शीतं न चोष्णं न सुख न दु:खं न मानावमाने च षडूर्मिवर्जं निन्दागर्वमत्सरदम्भदर्पेच्छाद्वेषसुखदुःखकामक्रोधलोभमो-हहर्षासूयाहंकारादींश्च हित्वा स्ववपुः कुणपमिव दृश्यते यतस्तद्वपुरपध्वस्तं संशयविपरीत-मिथ्याज्ञानानां यो हेतुस्तेन नित्यनिवृत्तस्तन्नित्यबोधस्तत्स्वयमेवावस्थितिस्तं शान्तमचलमद्वया-नन्दचिद्घन एवास्मि । तदेव मम परमधाम तदेव शिखा च तदेवोपवीतं च। परमात्मात्मनोरे-कत्वज्ञानेन तयोर्भेद एव विभग्नः सा संध्या ॥
na daṇḍaṁ na śikhāṁ na yajñopavītaṁ na cācchādanaṁ carati paramahaṁso na śītaṁ na coṣṇaṁ na sukha na duḥkhaṁ na mānāvamāne ca ṣaḍūrmivarjaṁ nindāgarvamatsaradambhadarpecchādveṣasukhaduḥkhakāmakrodhalobhamohaharṣāsūyāhaṁkārādīṁśca hitvā svavapuḥ kuṇapamiva dṛśyate yatastadvapurapadhvastaṁ saṁśayaviparītamithyājñānānāṁ yo hetustena nityanivṛttastannityabodhastatsvayamevāvasthitistaṁ śāntamacalamadvayānandacidghana evāsmi | tadeva mama paramadhāma tadeva śikhā ca tadevopavītaṁ ca | paramātmātmanorekatvajñānena tayorbheda eva vibhagnaḥ sā sandhyā ||
Translation 1 (revelation...) The supreme enlightened ascetic, the Paramahamsa, wanders freely without a staff [daṇḍa], without a hair-tuft [śikhā], without a sacred thread [yajñopavītam], and without covering (completely stripped of all external, societal identities). He remains totally unaffected by cold and heat, pleasure and pain, honor and dishonor. He is completely liberated from the six waves of worldly turbulence (hunger, thirst, grief, delusion, decay, and death). Having completed with and utterly abandoned all lower patterns—blame, pride, jealousy, hypocrisy, arrogance, desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, lust, anger, greed, delusion, joy, envy, ego, and the like—he perceives his own physical body purely as a lifeless corpse (with absolute disidentification). Because the illusion of the body-identity is utterly destroyed, he is eternally liberated from the root cause of all doubt, contrary understanding, and false knowledge. He exists as That continuous Eternal Awareness [tannityabodhaḥ], powerfully abiding as the Self alone. He declares, 'I am indeed That Reality—the profoundly peaceful, unshakable, non-dual Bliss, a solid mass of pure Consciousness [advayānandacidghana].' That Reality alone is my Supreme Abode; That alone is my true tuft, and That alone is my true sacred thread. By the ultimate Advaitic cognition of the absolute Oneness [ekatvajñānena] of the Supreme Cosmic Consciousness (God/Paramatman) and the individual soul (Atman), the very illusion of difference or separation between them is completely shattered and destroyed—that, indeed, is the true Sandhya (the ultimate sacred communion).
*paramahamsa* (great swan) — A liberated individual who has attained ultimate freedom, transcending conventional rules, dress codes, and societal moulds, sometimes even calling themselves 'mad' to remain entirely free.
*upanishad* (sitting) — In this context, the term denotes 'sitting', specifically referring to 'the sitting' which serves as a sacred communion.
*nityananda* (eternal bliss) — The constant, intense experience of eternal bliss or joy that characterizes a fully liberated being.
*shruti* (experienced through the ears) — The direct, lived experience of the great masters received through listening, rather than the mere auditory reception of words.
*avadhootha* (naked ascetic) — A completely naked ascetic who lives in complete harmony with nature, representing a state of spiritual realization that requires no external coverings.
During my parivrajaka (wandering) yatra (pilgrimage) in the icy heights of the Himalayas, near Gangotri, I lived the life of a true Paramahamsa (supreme enlightened ascetic). I wandered freely without a staff, without a hair-tuft, and without a sacred thread, completely stripped of all external, societal identities. One evening, the temperature plummeted far below freezing point. A group of local pilgrims, shivering in heavy woollen blankets, saw me sitting on a frozen rock near the sacred Ganga, wearing nothing but a small loincloth, completely absorbed in the inner space of samadhi (unbroken meditative absorption). They were deeply astonished and ran to me, crying, 'Swamiji! You will freeze to death! Please take this blanket!' I opened my eyes, smiling at their sweet concern. In that state, the physical body was perceived purely as a lifeless corpse, a mere instrument, while my inner space was burning with the intense fire of tannityabodhaḥ (continuous Eternal Awareness). I told them, 'For whom is the cold? The cold can only touch the physical skin, but I am not this body. I am advayānandacidghana (solid mass of pure non-dual Consciousness).' To demonstrate this absolute disidentification, I took a bowl of freezing water from the sacred river and poured it over my head. Instead of shivering, my body remained completely still, and the water immediately turned into vapour as it touched my skin, due to the intense spiritual heat, the tapas (spiritual penance) of non-dual awakening. The pilgrims fell at my feet, realizing that when the illusion of body-identity is utterly destroyed, a person is forever liberated from the dualities of cold and heat, pleasure and pain, and honour and dishonour.
A gentleman named Ananda (bliss) Pappaiah was visiting an art exhibition, deeply absorbed in looking at a beautiful painting. The portrait depicted a gorgeous young woman, completely stripped of all clothing, covered only by a few strategically placed green leaves. He stood there, staring intently at the painting for almost an hour, without moving an inch. Finally, his wife, losing her patience, grabbed him firmly by the elbow and said, 'All right, my dear, let us move on! Are you waiting for autumn to arrive so the leaves will fall?'
Swamiji, please accept my humblest prostrations. When You speak of dropping all external, societal identities to experience the pure inner space, I feel a deep yearning to do so. Yet, in my daily life, I must still work as a manager and care for my children. How can I practically drop these outer identities when my daily survival and relationships seem to demand them?
To drop your outer identity does not mean you physically run away from your office or abandon your family. It means realizing that these are merely external coverings. When you are at work, you may play the role of a manager, but you must not let that role become your inner reality. Complete freedom, like that of the Paramahamsa (supreme enlightened ascetic), comes only when you are completely stripped of all external societal conditioning inside your own consciousness. You must not wait for time or nature to strip away your illusions; you must consciously drop them now. When you realize you are not these roles, you step into the pure inner space.
Revered Swamiji, please forgive my ignorance, but I find myself deeply stuck on remaining unaffected by honour and dishonour. Recently, a colleague blamed me for a mistake I did not commit, and the humiliation felt like a physical blow. Swamiji, how can I stop the pain of this worldly turbulence from shaking me to my core when my reputation is on the line?
Understand that to an ordinary human, dishonour feels worse than death itself. But this is exactly where you must practise the powerful technique of being the un-same, remaining exactly the same to a friend as to a stranger in both honour and dishonour. This is not a mere moral teaching; it is a direct technique for enlightenment to create unshakeable inner peace. To transcend this, you must experience nivruthihi (transcendence), which means going completely beyond the vruthi (movement) of these physical and mental disturbances. When the ultimate understanding of your true nature awakens, the physical elements and worldly dualities completely lose their power over you.
Swamiji, I offer my respectful obeisances. If we are to perceive our physical body purely as a lifeless corpse to destroy the body-identity, why should we bother with *tapas* or trying to master our physical signals? Why does it matter what the body does if it is already just a corpse?
Tapas (spiritual penance) is not about torturing the body; it is simply tiring your physiological and psychological signals. You must make these signals understand that they cannot dictate terms to your physical system. Your physical body is just one of the seven bodies; the other six are subtle energy vehicles of your desires, thoughts, and guilt. When these signals are exhausted through tapas, the body just moves in the state of turiya (pure consciousness), completely disconnected from the ego. By realizing you are not the body, you embody absolute Nothingness. This is how the illusion of the body-identity is utterly destroyed.
Swamiji, I bow at Your feet. I have always struggled with trying to control my desires, often feeling like I am waging a violent war against my own senses. But You spoke of sense mastery as a relaxation rather than suppression. How can I transition from this painful struggle of control to the sweet surrender of *vairagya*?
True sense mastery is never about violently controlling or suppressing the outer world. When you fight your senses, you only create more conflict. True mastery happens when all your senses just relax and surrender into the sweetness of the inner space. This beautiful surrender is what I call vairagya (renunciation). It is neither mere attachment nor detachment, but having the right understanding about your needs. By the ultimate Advaitic cognition, the absolute Oneness of the Supreme Cosmic Consciousness, Paramatman (Supreme Cosmic Consciousness), and the individual soul, Atman (individual soul), is realized. In this ultimate sacred communion, the very illusion of difference or separation is completely shattered, and you abide in non-dual bliss.
The State of Absolute Disidentification
Understand this profound revelation about the state of the Paramahamsa (supreme enlightened ascetic).
Listen to this humorous incident about the human mind's obsession with external coverings. You must not wait for time or nature to strip away your illusions; you must consciously drop them now.
Transcending the Dualities and Worldly Waves
The Upanishad declares the enlightened being remains totally unaffected by cold and heat, pleasure and pain, honour and dishonour.
Let Me share an experience from My own wandering days that perfectly illustrates this truth. When the ultimate understanding of your true nature awakens, the physical elements completely lose their power over you.
Perceiving the Body as a Lifeless Corpse
Having utterly abandoned all lower patterns like pride, jealousy, and ego, the master perceives his physical body purely as a lifeless corpse.
Abiding in Non-Dual Bliss
He exists as That continuous Eternal Awareness, powerfully abiding as the Self alone.