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Aptavani-8
Those that do believe in reincarnation would know about the
Atma; that ‘my Atma is separate and I am separate’.
And the Atma is one of those things that no one has ever
found. Only those with Absolute Knowledge (Keval Gnanis)
have found it; if you say that, it would be fine. And those who
became Absolutely Enlightened (the Kevalis), did so by doing
the devotional worship (darshan) of those with Absolute
Knowledge (Keval Gnanis). However the real discovery was
made by the One is with Absolute Knowledge (the Keval
Gnanis) – the Tirthankars.
Therefore, the Atma is something that is not possible to
find. How can one find the Atma in this body? The Atma is
such a thing that it can pass through houses; it can even pass
through thousands of walls. So how is it possible for one to find
the Atma inside this body?
The Gnani Gives the Experience of the Atma
Questioner: So then worldly people can never attain the
Atma?
Dadashri: It is nothing like that. You yourself are Atma.
But you yourself do not have the awareness of how I am the
Atma! Otherwise, you are yourself the Atma.
When the Gnani Purush gives you Atmagnan (Self-
realization), how does he give it? He places a “line of
demarcation” between illusory knowledge (bhrant-gnan) and
this Knowledge of the Self (Atmagnan); between this
knowledge of the non-Self (jada gnan) and knowledge of the
Self (chetan Gnan). Thereafter, there is no likelihood of the
mistake ever occurring again. And the Atma will continue to
remain in one’s awareness; not even for a moment will that
awareness disappear.
Even at this very moment, both the natures and functions
(dharmas) of the Atma (Self) and the non-Atma (anatma -