" Aham Brahmasmi " (I'm the Universe / God)... The deep meaning

"Aham Brahmasmi" - I am Brahman / Universe / God

Many Vedas and Upanishads have said this over and over again. It seems like a simple line but a thinker would find the catch in this simple phrase.

Hindu scriptures say that there is only Brahman and nothing else. The Universe is the only and everything. The catch here is that when we hear this quote - "Aham Brahmasmi", there is a speaker ("I") and the object ("Universe"). The speaker is saying that "It" is the universe. 

But since there is nothing else but the universe, it means that the universe itself must be saying this to itself. It is the speaker, the listener, the object and the subject itself. Something like when we tell ourselves something, we are the subject, object, speaker and listener.

The indication in this line is towards perceptions ; that instead of thinking duality (Creator & Creation), one should THINK OF SINGULARITY.

The Brahman / Universe is conscious. We are a part of this current universe in this space and time... Right Now. Are we conscious of ourselves ? Yes we are. Is my friend conscious of herself? Yes she is. Is the dog sitting over there conscious of itself? Most certainly. 
The universe, we being an active part of it right now, is always conscious, and thus it says "Aham Brahmasmi".

So whenever I'm being conscious of myself, this part of the universe bound in me is being conscious of itself. Whenever I gaze at the stars, the universe is gazing at itself. Whenever I dream, the universe is dreaming in its own. Now multiply this into so many other souls on lets say just this planet. This means a whole chunk of the universe is being conscious of itself.

Now I have started feeling that my senses - my eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin, memory, intelligence / brain, etc are just mere tools for the universe to experience itself. 

In other words, I notice that I had no control over the birth of my body, this set of organic tools I have been born with, including my basic senses and also my talents. I just kept discovering along the way what I'm good at and walked on that path. I discovered with time what makes me happy, and did those things. But am I controlling any of the basic things here? Yes I know I can make choices, but those are so heavily dependent on my characteristics, the ones which I never chose. For example, I can decide to quit my job to start a business, but the basic quality of being free willed is something I was born with which is why I feel happily conditioned to be making this choice. Am I what I think I am, or a lost part of a larger consciousness ?

My body, my senses, my brain is just a medium to experience and wonder, to raise questions and seek answers. But the active universe, that decided the way my body and mind would be, is only trying to see and realize itself through all these processes, which I think of as my identity. Isn't it ?

Who else does that ? 

I think, all the souls on this planet do that; i.e search for meaning. Seriously, I constantly try to find out about myself, my paths, my happiness. Sometimes I try to figure out other people also, and they do the same as well with me. We are constantly trying to know and figure out each other. Why would the consciousness of the universe (we being a part of it always) try to do that ?

Seems like the universal consciousness forms my body and mind, my eyes, ears and memory and is looking through me and wondering... What the heck an I doing here ? What am I here for ? What should I be doing in life ? What am I searching for ?

Then I look at the other and start wondering... Who the heck is that ? What does he want in life ?  Whats my connection with them ?... and so on.

Conclusion : The universe is one. All elements (those we call living and non living) are actively a part of it. In fact the totality of it is the universe itself. Our consciousness isn't just ours alone, locked in this body. It transcends our physical self, even our imaginary self.

In fact, it is the single consciousness (God / Brahman / Om) that is creating, sustaining(creating time) and destroying continuously (seen as work of the trinity). 

This consciousness forms waves and frequencies which make matter and energy possible (scientifically observed under modern science, but always a recognized phenomenon in ancient sciences). 

Its only purpose is to create these numerous frequencies (of creation) and then solving the puzzle to return back to its original state (pure consciousness). This solving of the puzzle by the universe is what we experience in our bodies and minds when we search for meaning in ourselves and others (family, friends, humans and animals alike). 

This makes us the Universe, and the universe becomes me, as a single consciousness tied in the illusion of this body and mind. Meditation, spiritual practices and study, helps us realize our true nature. It clears our minds to make us understand that the Gods to whom we pray, whose idols we make, whose images and stories we love, we ourselves are a part of the same divinity, the figures and stories might change, but the unified consciousness is the same. 

It is the same consciousness that was Krishna, it is the same that is me, it is the same that will be Kalki.

Our "Aatmas" (souls), put together, 
becomes "Paramatma" (singlemost / supreme soul).

"Aham Brahmasmi"

Vedic Culture / Hinduism – Base Philosophy

It could get extremely difficult for a person to understand another culture, whose base values are alien to their own. We should remember, that philosophy is basically human thoughts, so by clear understanding, everybody’s mindset can be analysed. To understand behavior of a particular society, we need to understand its history and belief with an unbiased approach. . 

Different people, different mindsets, different backgrounds, different environments of development lead to differences in understanding. Well obviously. Here we will majorly discuss the base philosophy in Hinduism which sets the tone for any other thoughts and practices.

Base Philosophy – Unity in Diversity

Vedic culture (Hinduism) is not a religion at all.

Since it’s one of the oldest belief systems which are in current practice, in quite the same way as before, you can clearly notice one thing that it wasn't born in competition. Thus people did not even think of it as a religion / community. Various communities would have the same beliefs. It was just imparted as knowledge by the knowledgeable. Quite Simple! That's why, there was never striving towards making more followers. The focus was always on learning, realizing the Ultimate Truth(by those who wanted to), answering questions and developing philosophy. It was quite a personal quest, not a power quest.

The Vedas say that the Supreme Conciousness runs through, and thus connects, every being, whatever they are, wherever they are. Different bodies and minds but the same soul. Once a person realizes this much, he sees no point in distinction and separation. He / She sees "Unity in Diversity"

Since this knowledge is applicable to everyone and everything, it should be left to each individual whether they want to inculcate and understand it or not. It can't be done by force or subjugation.

Vedas have never been dogmatic. They believe in the concept of unity in diversity, not just unity alone. Matter is diverse at every level but is still the same. Everything is changing all the time, nothing is constant in this universe. Your bodies are not your bodies but processes, they keep changing every moment. Only the soul is timeless and is One. The source of all this is Divinity/God. It unites all that is extremely diverse. This was taught and explained in all Gurukuls(shools) of ancient India. It was a tradition and method which is very different from modern education systems.

In this system, it was the student who always decided whether his/her studies and education was complete or not. A good Guru could thoroughly read his students and know what their intellect is demanding. This is the first example of establishing tolerance through "Unity in Diversity". Only when the wise men like Gurus realise the different potentials in students, instead of making all of them give the same exam, will they be able to inculcate the same habbits in their students. What could be more important that developing, unbiased, intellegent and observing students who will later form the society?

Secondly, never did Hinduism consider one thing superior and another inferior. This also began in the schools. Each student was also given their own customized shot at learning according to their own capacities. Every student was important. How? because it is due to the weaker students, that the brighter gets noticed, if everyone was equally bright, then being a bright student would have no meaning. Just like prey doesn't have any meaning without a predator, good has no meaning without bad, and light has no importance without dark, similarly a bright student has no meaning without dull ones. All that exists is with a reason and is thus respectable. By being biased towards what pleases us, we are only filling our societies with hate, jealousy and anger. 

So Vedas / Hinduism says - quit hating and see the beauty and oneness in all diversity- the black and white, the curly and straight, the tall and short, the bright student and the dull student, the one who is among our tribe and the one who is not, they are all respectable, all the same.
So, I think, that maybe the stronger students never bullied the weaker ones back in those days.

Note : The reason why you can find many Hindus going to Dargah(holy shrine of Muslim faith) and to Churches, with mostly no hesitation, is Unity in Diversity, followed in almost a sub conscious manner.

Hinduism / Vedas believe that everything is divine as it is and it has a place in this universe whether it’s a part of my lifestyle and beliefs or not. The reason why you have so many  sub-cultures in India is "Unity in Diversity". So many types of foods, different languages and scripts, variety of spices, diverse clothing styles, hair and makeup, different beliefs, various auspicious items, ways of cooking, musical genres, dance genres, architecture, etc. exist. Its all diverse, its all beautiful, it all coexists, and its all divine. Its inevitable also.

This concept of harmony, is seen in nature. Look at the sea creatures, so different and co existing, look at forests and its creatures, creatures below the earth, in the river. They co-exist in a harmonious system. Nature is like that everywhere.  Its diverse. Diversity is natural and almost defines the essence of existence, the essence of God. We are only a tiny part of nature, a few species of it living in different parts of the world and are bound to be different, and so will our beliefs be different depending on climate, resources, food and other factors. 

Thus, people who have been so respectful of diversity are definitely going to have diverse worship techniques and many diverse deities. The people who so constantly also believe in Unity in Diversity, will also see all deities as beautiful manifestations of the same that is Divine and that is ONE.  This is what Vedic knowledge / Hinduism’s core is.

I think Albert Einstien mentioned that if all bees die, humans would die too in a matter of years. So that makes the bee as important a part of creation as humans. 

That’s why what the western world sees as chaos and confusion, Hindus / people residing in India see as curry, an aromatic blend of differences. Some people also believe, that it is so embedded in the daily life of Indians, that regardless of community and religion, Indians follow the Hindu philosophy of Unity in Diversity subconsciously. Its actually very simple, very pleasing, and could bring a lot of good health, harmony and peace in anyone's life. It could stop the hating and jealousy in the world.

So, "Unity in Diversity" somewhat forms the base of the tonnes of Hindu philosophy. God is ONE but with countless manifestations...

Q. Why is  Unity in Diversity so important as a philosophy?

A. When we believe in Unity in Diversity, we learn tolerance and the ability to see a person’s heart and soul inspite of the obvious differences in thoughts and cultures. Only in this way do we know what’s right and what is wrong in given situations, keeping our mind unbiased. 
"Unity in Diversity" concept teaches us to put down our ego, anger and false pride, to attain knowledge and spread it, to feel love and love back.

Thanks for your time

Saurabh Dey

(OMCULTR)