The pathless path - Part 4

This is our fourth article in a series of articles. As before, please do not read this article before reading the first article of the series. 

We have now briefly touched on the path of devotion and the path of service. In this article, we shall very briefly touch on the path of knowledge. This is also known as Jnana Yoga. 

Unlike the two previously mentioned paths or practices, this one is quite different. In this path, we are not emphasizing the idea of a separate doer, as in oneself performing a selfless act or a devotional act. In fact, we want to investigate this 'owner' of actions and experiences.

The aim of this path is to know who we truly are, to become aware of our True Nature, and accordingly, any idea of a 'separate self' dissolves.

The path of knowledge is to make us aware of what is Here and Now. We do not want to learn about something new, we do not want to learn more mantras, more prayers, more religious stuff.

This specific knowledge we are studying, or reflecting upon, is the antidote to ignorance - ignoring our True Nature. Before we proceed, we want to note that the intention behind this specific article is simply to touch on Jnana Yoga, and not elaborate on the 'outcome' of this path.

Beyond intellect

The path of knowledge refers to the Knowledge of the Self. Self-Knowledge. Through knowing our True Nature, all other questions are answered or dissolved. We can also say that the 'questioner' dissolves. In fact, the apparent knower, the known, and the knowing, dissolve.

Here, the knowledge we study does not relate to any object. It is about our Self, our Being, the Subject of all experiences. 

This knowing is not intellectual knowledge, but intuitive knowing, although it starts off as intellectual knowledge. 

One way of doing this is by studying specific material related to this topic. Again, we are not to simply believe the material, but we are to investigate and realize our True Nature. We keep reflecting on the knowledge, intellectually, and we apply it to our inquiry. 

By 'inquiry', we refer to checking up, investigating who we truly are. We inquire into our own Nature. This can be done by discrimination, or a process called Neti Neti. 

We are not this, we are not that... We start with inquiring like this, taking away what we are not. Eventually, the discrimination or duality becomes clear as non-duality, but this is not to be discussed here. 

A healthy balance

Undertaking the path of knowledge, or being a Jnani, it is important that at the same time, we follow a path of Bhakti Yoga or Karma Yoga.

Why? See, Jnana Yoga is an intellectual path, or at least it starts off as an intellectual path.

It is easy to get absorbed by intellectualism and have an imbalance of heart and mind. A mere intellectual understanding of emptiness can make us act cold towards others, falling into a trap of nihilism. It is difficult to focus or concentrate on our True Nature, which can never be any object of thought or focus. At the same time, it is easy to have an object of devotion or to serve other people.

The path of knowledge is not about mindfulness or introspection - we do not want to keep observing and investigating thoughts. We do not want to analyze thought with more thought, but we want to see where the thoughts arise from. Does this make sense?

It is about knowing the Silent Witness of the thoughts. Knowing the Witness to the physical world and physical body, and even the subtle thoughts and emotions. Even more subtle, when a blankness or darkness appears in the mind, we can check up who the Ever-Present Witness of this blank state is too. Who is aware of the void?

We are the Silent Witness, Awareness Itself.
Awareness and "I" is 'not two'.

The water, the hills, and the sky appear in the photo, but there is only one photo. In the same way, the universe appears as many objects, but it is all one. It is not separate from who we are. 

Related articles on this blog:

The Pathless Path, Part 1 - 6 September, 2021
The Pathless Path, Part 2 - 19 September, 2021
The Pathless Path, Part 3 - 3 October, 2021