What is Death for the Wise Person (Jivanmukta)? – Part 43
In previous discussion, student began asking features of a liberated one while living.
Although not the only, prominent feature being non-injury owing to much prior hard work to cleanup one's mind and practice the right values.
Now question turns to what happens to enlightened one after body physically dies…
Student asks, “No matter how wise, as long as we have a body-mind, we can never be totally free. If this is true, what happens to the wise? Doe they die the moment they understand they are not different from the One?“
“ Birth and death belong to the relative world.
A wise person (jivanmukta/jnani) looks upon death as the dropping away of one's psycho-physical self (body-mind complex).
What is born, one day must die. It is the order of creation.
When the physical body dies, it returns the 5 elements.
Bones to earth. Fluids to water. Warmth to fire. Breath to wind. Space within the body, to space.
For the person who knows the truth, the self (atman) is the Limitless One.
Their mind, thoughts and memories… together with the identity-producing ego — like water sprinkled on a burning hot stone — evaporates. Leaving no trace.
Without the ego (antahkarana) there is no identity. No one to own up the sentient-person's thoughts and memories.
Without which, future births are not possible.
Despite the body's frailties, limited strength and capabilities — despite the mind's vagaries, limited power and capacity — the wise one well understands, ‘I' is the all pervading source.
I am when nothing is happening.
I am when something is happening.
I am while forgetting.
I am while remembering.
I am while agreeing.
I am while disagreeing.
‘I' is the One real. The only real because ‘I am' ever available.
Rest are dependent-reals, including the body-mind experience existing within time and space.
But I, the One, Limitless-Existence-Consciousness (satcitananda) was, is, and will be always just Existence.
‘I am' with neither birth nor death. For what is Limitless, how can it die?
If every sage and wise person cast of their body upon moment of liberation, when will we find masters to teach us?
How will we find a way out of our beginningless sorrow (samsara) ?
But we do have masters to lead and guide us to our self (atma).
The answer to your question is obvious…
Physical death is of no major concern to the wise. “
Student continues, “When a wise person's body falls away, what happens to the fruits of his-her actions? Do they not have to experience them? After all, long as the body exists, they think and act like a common man.“
” Once a person understands the truth (aham brahman asmi), his or her past fruits-of-actions accumulated in their many births (sanchita karma), are completely wiped. Not a trace of them remains.
Only that fruit-of-action because of which they have a body (prarabdha karma) — continues to function, until the body falls apart.
But the results of their actions performed in this life (agami karma), no longer adheres to them.
They have no sense of doer-ship having understood clearly mithya, dependent-real status of their ego (relative identity).
Their lives like empty flutes echo the sacred music of the Lord.
Instruments playing His divine song in harmony with the surroundings. “
