We understand that the world we live in is an illusion, the Atman is the only truth. Does it mean that time is also an illusion?

Akram Vignan provides an in-depth scientific clarification to:

1.Is the world an illusion?
2.Atman, the real truth?
3.Is Time an illusion?
Let’s get some of its basic understanding here, today…

1) Our World - is it an illusion or the truth?

What if you have a bad toothache and you spend the entire night turning your rosary beads repeating the words, ‘this is just an illusion’; will the pain become an illusion? No, the pain seems very much real! If the world is indeed an illusion, then why don’t we throw away our hard-earned money and cherish possessions out onto the streets? We cannot, because the world is real from the perspective of the relative self.

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan says, “I will explain what an illusion is. It is an illusion when you pull your pants up believing you are standing in water but nothing gets wet. It is an illusion if you touch what looks like fire but it does not burn you. People say that the Self (Atman) is real and the world is an illusion. If that is the case, then put your hand in a fire and find out whether it is an illusion or not.

One can tell whether it is an illusion or not by looking at the effects. For example, if you throw a brick on a wall, you will not see any effect on the brick or the wall if the world were an illusion. But it is not an illusion because you will see a red mark on the wall and the brick too will be broken. Another example is that if someone tells you, ‘You have no sense’ and his or her statement has no effect on you, then it would prove that the world is an illusion. But instead what happens is that the effect of such a statement will be there even when you wake up in the middle of the night and remember what was said to you. This proves that the world is not an illusion.”

2) Atman, the real truth?

Atman means Soul i.e. the Self.

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan says, “I am saying that the world and the Soul (the Self) are both true. The world is a relative truth and the Self is the real truth. My words are eternal truth. There is no telling when the relative truth of this world would become untrue. All these relatives are temporary adjustments and the Self is the real truth, it is eternal, it is permanent.”

It is only after Self-realization is attained that we understand that the Self is the real truth.
Self-realization means:

1.We, with the grace of Gnani, the Enlightened One, acquire the conviction of ‘I am really an Atman.’ Rather than the false belief of ‘this is my body and name, these are my relationships, this is happening to me…’ one gradually, through the conviction of ‘I am a Pure Soul’ starts remaining in the awareness of his real form.

2.We also understand who is the doer and how the entire world runs. We appreciate that the world is running naturally and any event happens through the coming together of the scientific circumstantial evidences.

After Self-realization, as the real understanding starts to establish and our false beliefs are fractured, the body continues to carry out its destined daily functions, while we, as the pure Soul, persevere to remain as mere observer and knower of the body’s actions, thoughts and speech, and ego’s good and bad intentions.

3.Is Time an illusion?
Time is an eternal element. It is not an illusion; it is a real element. The Universe exists because of six eternal elements namely Space, Matter, Motion, Inertia, Time and Soul.

We learnt above that any event happens through the coming together of the scientific circumstantial evidences. Accordingly, time is one of the scientific circumstantial evidences. Every element has its own role to play in the occurrence of any event. The simplest way to understand the roles of each of these elements is: Suppose there are six partners in a company.

Now,
1. that which provides the place for the business is Space;
2. the provider of the goods for the business is Matter;
3. that which transports the goods back and forth is the element of Motion;
4. that which does the work of arranging and storing the goods is the element of Inertia;
5. that which is responsible for the settlement of the above four is the element of Time;
6. and the One who oversees (knows and sees) everything is the element of Soul. “To see the dharma (function) of everything; to see ‘who is performing what function and how that function is being performed; to see this is the function of the Soul” –Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan.

To conclude:
World is not an illusion; it is a relative truth. Relative means ‘in relation to’. And Atman is the real truth.

Just like Atman, time too is an eternal element. Eternal means everlasting, permanent and never changing. Hence, Atman and Time, both are a real truth!

To learn more on this, please visit our website: https://www.dadabhagwan.org/