Day 262 - The Story of Kaca and the Lessons on Renunciation and Liberation

Day 262 - The Story of Kaca and the Lessons on Renunciation and Liberation

Kaca’s Journey to Enlightenment

After listening to the tale of Sikhidhvaja, Rama inquires about Kaca, the son of Brhaspati, who also attained enlightenment. Vasistha recounts Kaca's path, which mirrors the journey of Sikhidhvaja.

Kaca, eager to be liberated from the cycle of birth and death (samsara), approached his father Brhaspati and asked how he could achieve freedom. Brhaspati simply told him, "Renounce everything." Kaca, taking this advice seriously, retreated to the forest and performed intense austerities for eight years. Despite his efforts, he did not find peace. When he returned to his father for guidance, Brhaspati repeated his advice, emphasizing total renunciation. Kaca interpreted this to mean he needed to renounce even his bodily attachments, so he discarded his clothing and continued his austerities for another three years.

Still unable to find enlightenment, Kaca sought his father's advice once more. Brhaspati then clarified that by "renouncing everything," he meant renouncing the mind itself, for the mind is the source of all attachment and illusion. Kaca, puzzled by this, asked his father what the mind truly was. Brhaspati explained that the mind is the "I," or the egosense, which is born out of ignorance and delusion. He taught Kaca that this ego is not real; it merely seems to exist because of ignorance.

The Deluded Man and the Nature of Ego

To illustrate the illusion of the egosense, Vasistha told the story of a deluded man. This man, fashioned by ignorance, believed he was born of space and that the space around him was his possession. To protect this space, he built various structures like a house, a well, and a grove. However, each structure eventually crumbled or disappeared, leaving the man grieving over his "lost" space.

The story highlights the absurdity of identifying the self with physical forms and possessions. Just as space is not lost when a house collapses, the true self remains untouched when the body or other material forms perish. The self, or pure consciousness, is indestructible and eternal. The egosense, which identifies with the body and material objects, is the source of suffering.

The Illusory World and the Unmodified (Nirvikalpa) Understanding

Vasistha continues by explaining that the mind, with its faculty of thinking and imagining, arose from the supreme Brahman (infinite consciousness). Just as waves are inseparable from the ocean, the mind exists within Brahman, but this does not mean that the mind is real or separate. The idea of the world and its material forms is a product of this illusory mind.

However, for those with a nirvikalpa understanding, who realize that the world is non-different from Brahman, this illusion is dissolved. Such individuals see only Brahman, not the appearance of diversity, and remain established in peace and equanimity. The world becomes like a daydream—neither fully real nor entirely false.

Bhrngisa's Lesson from Lord Siva: Triple Discipline

In the final story, Vasistha shares the teaching that Lord Siva gave to Bhrngisa, another seeker of truth. Siva taught Bhrngisa a triple discipline that leads to liberation: being a mahabhoktta (great enjoyer), a mahakarta (great doer), and a mahatyagi (great renouncer).

1. Mahakarta (Great Doer): A great doer performs actions naturally and without attachment. He remains unaffected by success or failure and performs his duties without the interference of likes, dislikes, or ego.

2. Mahabhoktta (Great Enjoyer): A great enjoyer experiences life fully without clinging to pleasure or avoiding pain. He treats both joy and sorrow with equal detachment and remains a witness to all experiences without being affected by them.

3. Mahataygi (Great Renouncer): A great renouncer transcends the dualities of right and wrong, pleasure and pain, and life and death. He abandons the egosense and all notions of the world, realizing that the body and the world are illusory.

Through this discipline, Bhrngisa was freed from delusion, realizing the truth of the self beyond all appearances and illusions.

The Conclusion for Rama

Vasistha advises Rama to adopt this triple discipline and remain free from doubt, engaging in action without attachment, enjoying life without clinging to it, and renouncing all false notions. By doing so, Rama, like Sikhidhvaja, Kaca, and Bhrngisa, will attain liberation while still living, transcending the illusions of the world.