T Ram Sewak

TURIYA AWASTHA

Kakabhushundiji's discourse now transitions into its concluding phase in Shri Ramcharitmanas 7.117. He states:

teeni kaarhi, tool sugaarhi.

"From the three states (Jagrat - waking, Swapan - dreaming, and Sushupti - deep sleep) and the three gunas (Sattva - purity and balance, Rajas - activity and passion, and Tamas - inertia and ignorance), which are akin to a cotton ball, extract the essence of the Turiya awastha (the fourth transcendental state) as fine cotton, and then shape it into a beautiful, firm wick."

After pouring the ghee of wisdom into the lamp of the mind, firmly positioned upon the base of equanimity, we prepare the wick. The metaphor now illustrates the transcendence from the limited states of consciousness and gunas to attain the Turiya state, i.e. pure awareness.

The three states represent the mind's experiences in its usual functioning. Likewise, in varying proportions, the three gunas (tendencies) present in the human body, mind, and intellect symbolise the forces influencing nature and behaviour. Transcending these is akin to extracting pure fibre representing Turiya, then "twisted into a wick," symbolising the disciplined and focused mental preparation necessary to hold and radiate the light of ultimate wisdom or self-realisation. This Turiya is the state of pure consciousness beyond the mind's conditioning and the fluctuations of the gunas.

Achieving the Turiya state resonates deeply with Gita's message of transcending material modes, dualities, and states and realising the supreme Self.

Shri Krishna asks Arjun in Gita 2.45 to liberate himself from the triad of the gunas and the pair of opposites. In Gita 14.20, He proclaims that the embodied, having transcended the three gunas ( becoming guna ateet), achieves immortality. The interplay of gunas governs the states of waking, dreaming, and deep sleep. By transcending the gunas, one surpasses the limitations of these states, stabilises the mind, dissolves the identification with the ego and accesses the

higher state of Turiya! / DAILY WORLD /

The author is a former electrical Engineer and resides in the Himalayas. He can be occasionally reached at ramam.namami@gmail.com