3 - Discourses on Tantra Volume Two

Chapter 1 Sádhaná (1)

Today I would like to discuss mata and patha [opinions regarding the Supreme, and paths to the Supreme]. Mata means a certain style of thought, so we have to see where the action of thinking originates, develops, and culminates; and we have to see on what the action of thinking depends. When someone says, “It’s my opinion, my personal view,” where does the action of thinking lie and how does it take place? Thinking depends on the unit mind; it originates in the unit mind and is maintained in the unit mind.

In the absolute sense what is the unit mind? The Cosmic Mind reaches a state of maximum crudification through saiṋcara [the phase of extroversial movement], and thereafter starts returning to Its original abode through pratisaiṋcara [the phase of introversial movement]. The small “I” feeling that gradually develops within crude matter is called the unit mind. Although the Macrocosmic Mind is the Supreme Controller of everything in this universe, It does delegate a certain degree of control to unit minds as they increase in complexity in the phase of pratisaiṋcara. Therefore the unit mind can be called a primary sub-centre in a physical structure within the Macrocosmic Mind. Unit minds have to act within the periphery of time, place, and person, as created by the Macrocosm, and their different styles of action are called mata [opinions]. Just as the unit mind is dependent on time, place and person for its creation, maintenance and annihilation, each of its expressions also depends on a particular time, place and person. This is why opinion carries its highest value in a particular time, place, or individual, and loses its value, or becomes altogether non-existent, when any of these three relative factors changes. Opinions do have some value in both individual and collective life. But when one is dealing with the Absolute Entity, who transcends the boundaries of time, place and person, does one’s opinion have any value? No, in this case an individual opinion has no value whatsoever. Thus the statement Yata mata, tata patha(1) is not logically tenable. An opinion held by a particular individual or group regarding the social sphere, the economic sphere, or the political sphere does have some value, but to attempt to express an opinion concerning the absolute sphere would be simply ludicrous.

An opinion is a psychic object. An opinion of a particular person is, in effect, an object of the object of the Cognitive Faculty [the objects of the Cognitive Faculty are minds and the objects of minds are opinions]. So how can an opinion become the subject of the Supreme Subjectivity? How can it know the Knower of the known? One’s opinion in this regard has no value – for anyone to have an independent opinion about Parama Puruśa is meaningless.

Regarding Parama Puruśa the unit mind can do only one thing: become one with Him as the Supreme Subject. The unit mind must accept Parama Puruśa as its object, and run towards Him. Even this proposition is illogical in the absolute sense. Rather it should be said that the unit mind will have to return to its own subject. This should be the only movement, movement towards the Paramágati [literally, the “Supreme Terminus where the movement, or journey, of finite entities culminates”].

Thus a unit mind may hold many opinions about the mundane world, but no opinion regarding the spiritual world. The path which leads to supreme bliss is a singular one; there is no second path. The path is one, and only one.

If this universe is considered as a circle, its nucleus is the blissful Puruśottama to which every point on the circumference is connected. If any microcosm located on any point of the circumference wants to reach the Nucleus, he or she will have to move with Cosmic ideation, floating on the divine waves of bliss. From no matter what point on the circumference one measures the distance to the Nucleus, that radius will always be the same. This radius is termed the ánanda márga [the path of bliss]. So the ánanda márga is the only márga. The spiritual path has nothing to do with the opinions of any particular individual or of any group of individuals, because Paramátmá cannot be attained by opinions.