Abi: Last night you were teaching me in my dream... it was strong, powerful teaching. I cannot remember the details, but I can still feel it.

Nagar: Good morning, Abi. It is a good sign when the burning desire for moksa begins showing up in the dream state. It means that I has grown roots into the causal body.

Abi: Oh, great. I have never heard it this way... Recently I have been having many dreams about this.... a couple of days ago in my dream I saw that the world is unreal and the seeing was very true so that I woke up affected deeply.

Nagar: When one comes to Vedanta, one is immediately introduced to the truth: you are the formless, actionless, pure consciousness and you are whole, full, limitless, and therefore complete.

So you get the self-knowledge right away. But only after some contemplation and the constant application of the teachings this knowledge will produce a biding “self-knowledge vasana” in the causal body.

This new set of vasanas (samskaras) will then allow the jiva to discriminate, appreciate and enjoy the fruits of self-knowledge. That’s called moksa.

Moksa is very simple, but not so easy. It is easy if you are highly qualified (in possession of a contemplative sattvic mind). But if you are not, it is almost impossible. One would need to qualify first. To get the knowledge is only the first stage.

To develop a strong value/desire for moksa is the second. To constantly apply the teachings and cultivate a new set of vasanas is a more advanced stage in this process.

The causal body is often very crowded with all kinds of subtle desires (vasanas). The hardest part is to have your new vasana win the race – to grow the “population” of your self-inquiry vasanas while shrinking all others.

The condition of the jiva, after having exposed his mind to the scriptures, after having contemplated and cleared his doubts with the help of a qualified teacher, realized that she/he is the non-dual self and, most importantly, after having applied the teachings on a moment-to-moment basis, is called liberation, or moksa.

Abi: Please explain how the jiva being able to “discriminate, appreciate and enjoy the fruits of self-knowledge” is called moksa.

Nagar: What this post most importantly suggests is that in the process I have just described the jiva will be developing a new set of vasanas: a vasana for self-inquiry, for peace of mind, for contemplation, etc. Without these new samskaras, which is but a great value for self-knowledge and freedom, nothing is possible.

It may be also helpful to mention that moksa is not equal to self-realization. Self-realization is to recognize and see by a first-hand direct knowledge (a knowledge with no doubt, or a fully confident knowledge) that “I am pure consciousness” and that all there is is “me,” consciousness.

Abi: I think I need more clarification about the difference between self-realization and moksa, which is enlightenment according to James’ glossary. Is self-realization something other than enlightenment?

Nagar: Words are vehicles of communication as well as the delivery of knowledge. Fundamentally, the meaning of words is objective, but words often have a subjective element to them as well because different people or cultures may impart different meanings to the same word.

In the English language of Vedanta presented by Ramji, enlightenment = self-actualization = freedom = moksa = liberation, among a few other names. Self-realization is a condition when you clearly know that you are awareness, or pure consciousness.

But self-realization does not necessarily fructify as moksa/liberation unless one’s binding vasanas have being neutralized by the application of self-inquiry/discrimination over a certain period of time. This process is often referred to as “purification of mind.”

Once your compulsive vasanas are under control (neutralized), you will find yourself in the condition that you know who you are and your thoughts and actions are in harmony with your knowledge. In other words, you walk your talk. You are then enlightened, free, or liberated, from the tyranny of your biding vasanas.

Moksa is a different condition that may occur or not after self-realization. It is a result of the constant application of discrimination that will cause adharmic biding vasanas (self-centered attachments, desires and aversions) to become non-binding. Only then the jivamukta will enjoy the fruits of self-knowledge.

Abi: A very good explanation; thank you for clearing it up for me.