Book knowledge needs to be thrown away; it is stored information, and is always in the past, while Truth is in the Present - eternally flowing, pulsating with life

Gomukh, 1984

(from "Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master")

Sri M.:  Maheshwarnath Babaji returned in May, and we spent five days together in Uttarkashi. After that, it was time to go to Gomukh, the source of the Ganga. On the second day after Babaji’s arrival, I told him of my meeting with the venerable, old, holy man. “I know,” he said, “and you think I should see him?”“I feel that only you could help him,” I said.

The next day, Babaji took me along and we went to meet the holy man. He was sitting on his favorite rock seat when we arrived. He saw us, stood up, and climbed down to the ground. When we were close, he put his palms together and greeted Babaji. I did the same while greeting him. Babaji said, “Greetings Swamiji, do you want me to send Madhu away while we have a chat?”

“Pranams yogiji maharaj,” said the old monk, “Let him stay. Perhaps he will benefit from the discussion. I have no problem.” So, I was privileged to be present during the discussions. We sat down right there, and Babaji started off straight away in his direct style. “Swamiji,” he said, “I have great respect for your learning, and more so for the courageous way in which you declined to succeed as the head of your Mutt. You have thrown away your dandi and crown, and today, live like a simple itinerant sanyasin. Great! But you are still far away from the Brahman you seek because the burden of knowledge and scholarship that you carry on your head acts as an effective barrier to your understanding of ‘Reality.’ Shall I continue?”

“Yes, please do. I am beginning to grasp what you are saying.”

“You are so full of the knowledge that you have acquired, that there is no space to receive the ‘Truth,’ which is waiting to enter. Unburden yourself. Throw away all that and embrace emptiness, so that you can receive in abundance.”

“I have often wondered what the sloka – ‘he who worships knowledge enters into greater darkness’ – from the Isavasya Upanishad, really means,” said the monk, “and have never accepted the conventional explanation, that ‘knowledge’ here means the Apara Vidya or non-essential knowledge and so on. The rishis were very direct and would have used the word Apara, if that was what they intended to convey. Now, I am beginning to understand. Pray continue, Sir.”

Babaji said, “You are right. The word Apara was not used because it was not necessary to qualify Vidya. The fact is knowledge, by itself, is an obstacle to understanding the Absolute Truth. I’ll explain. You see, when I set out to acquire knowledge of something, what is the process involved? First, I observe, then understand it, and then, store it in my memory, right?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“When I say that I have knowledge of x or y, what I actually mean is that having understood something, it is now stored in my memory, and I can recall it instantly. This is what constitutes knowledge, any knowledge. So, all knowledge is memory, and memory, the very word, means, it is a thing of the past. In the present, there is no memory. Memory is stored information, and is always in the past. Can you, with your keen intelligence, follow what I am saying?”

“Yes”

“Now,‘Truth’ cannot be something in the past. It is the ‘eternal present,’ and therefore, cannot be stored in the memory, which is a thing of the past, the dead past. ‘Truth,’ on the other hand is in the present, the now, eternally flowing, pulsating with life, and therefore, cannot be touched by knowledge.

“The mind, like the Keno Upanishad says, ‘cannot comprehend it.’ It is only when the mind is empty of all the garbage which we carry around in our knowledgeable brains, and when it is quiet and still as it is no longer becoming anything or struggling to acquire, that there is space for the Truth, the ever present, to manifest.

“The doors and the window panes, thick with the dark tint of pride and second-hand knowledge, have to be left open for the sweet, divine breeze to enter. I hope I am clear.”

Gangotri

After a long silence, the old man spoke.

“Ah! Great silence,” he said “I haven’t sat in such stillness all my life. Although, I must confess that once or twice, I was at its threshold when doing nothing in particular, just watching the river or looking up at the clear sky.”

Babaji said, “When that silence comes upon you spontaneously, don’t interfere. Just be still. May Sri Guru Babaji bestow his blessings on you so that you discover the ‘Truth.’

“I will not see you again. We leave for Gomukh in a few days.” With that, Babaji stood up and we bid farewell to the old man. With tears in his eyes, he attempted to prostrate at Babaji’s feet, but Babaji held him by his shoulders, and did not allow him to do that.

“You belong to the order of renunciants and wear ochre,” he said, “Moreover, you are a sincere man and as far as the outside world is concerned, you are older than me. So, I cannot let you prostrate at my feet. I can see your love for me in your eyes, and that is sufficient.”

We left him standing on the banks of the Ganga, his eyes following us till we were out of sight.“Babaji,” I said, “Guide me also to the ‘Truth.’ Today, I learnt something profound. You are so kind.”

Babaji laughed and put his right arm around my shoulders, “Everything at the proper time,” he said. “On Thursday morning, we shall travel to Gomukh.”