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368
Aptavani-8
Dadashri: The Atma does not have illusion (bhranti); it is just the vision (darshan) that has been covered up. The vision of the real, fundamental (muda) Atma, has been entirely covered up. Because of the external gift these people on the outside give him; the gift of ignorance (agnan) the very moment he is born. They themselves are ignorant (agnani) and they place him on the rung of ignorance. Therefore, he too starts to believe it, and because he believes it, the vision (darshan) gets covered. Because the vision gets covered he says, “This is my father-in-law, and this is my uncle.' And I am telling you, that these are all wrong beliefs. One's Salvation Is Through the Awareness of
the Main Self Form Questioner: So is that not the same as saying that the Atma has to work towards its own liberation?
Dadashri: The liberation of the Atma has to be done by the Atma itself, which means that fundamentally the Atma is something that is already liberated. However, the atma that one believes in, the atma that has been instilled with life (pratishthit atma), is not really the right belief. The fundamental and real (muda) Atma is already liberated, but the atma that has been instilled with life (pratishthit atma) is the atma one where he considers his own self to be. When he himself, comes to know that, “This is indeed my own form and nature (swaroop), and I am with Knowledge (Gnan), with Vision (Darshan), with Conduct (Charitra)', then even his liberation will happen. So when one makes a real spiritual effort (purusharth) in this way for one's own liberation, only then will it occur. But one has to meet the Gnani Purush who will give him the awareness of the nature of his own Self (swaroop), and only then he will be able to make that real spiritual effort (purusharth). And that is when he attains liberation.
Jai Sat Chit Anand
