Regardless of our, physical, mental and financial condition, we are all overwhelmed by the human condition that is characterised by us living in an environment that is far beyond our understanding.  The changes that take place in this world appear far beyond our control. We are subject to a cycle of births and deaths that we are terrified of.  

So we all seek peace, permenance, bliss, and complete independance from physical needs.

The answer to the question - "Who is the Seeker" would seem simple enough becuase the obvious answer is "Me" or "I" or "Myself".

The problem with these answers is that since we are born in complete ignorance of our own selves, we do not know which aspect of our inner seves is the 'real' 'us' or 'i'.

The question as to what it is we seek depends on who or what  the seeker is.  If the seeker is poor, the seeker will want money. If the seeker is physically sick, the person will seek health.  If the seeker is physically handicapped, normal limbs and parts will be sought.

So we begin to take ourselves apart and ask - "Is it my body which needs permenance"? "Is it my mind"?  "Is it my consciousness"? "Is it my attachment to the people and objects around me"? "Is it my desire for continued experience of pleasure"? "Can I stop my physical ageing and attain permenance"? "Can I make the world come to a standstill and attain permenance?

Which Aspect of ourselves needs (and can actually benefit from) peace, permenance, bliss, and independance? It is very important to know the answer to the question because we are comprised of many parts and aspects, each of which pulls in different directions and seem to have different priorities.

Our bodies seek nourishment, protections from adversaries. Our mind seeks pleasure, comfort, victory, success. The mind has many other aspects such as the need for recognition, take ownership and possession of all that it believes to exist. The mind has many needs and each of these needs pull the self in different directions. Ravanna's ten heads signify the pulls that we experience every moment. Our consciousness or Atma appears to dwell on the mind for its sustenance. When we are in deep sleep, we loose awareness of the self and the passage of time.  When we regain the conscious state, the mind becomes active again, with its fears, insecurities, ignorance and desires. Our consciousness or JIVATMA is trapped in the attrubutes of the mind. 

It appears that the sustenance of consciouness or JIVATMA requires that the conscious mind needs to be kept active which means the needs of the mind, and/including the body, be constantly serviced and looked after. This means that we become dependant on the environment in which we are born, and its unending vagaries for our sustenance. 

THE FREEING OF THE JIVATMA FROM THE SHACKLES OF THE MIND AND ITS COMPONENTS INTO A STATE OF COMPLETE INDEPENDANCE IS THE JOURNEY OF LIFE. 

To put it differently, we are born in a state of ignorance and dependance and gradually entangle ourselves from the shackles to merge into the supreme state of eternal bliss.

This is not to say that we are the ATMA and then sit back without knowing what the JIVATMA is.

REMEMBER, WE HAVE ONLY COME TO THE RELATIVELY SIMPLE CONCLUSION THAT WE NEED TO BE SOMETHING MORE THAN JUST THE BODY, OR EVEN JUST THE MIND TO ATTAIN PERMENANCE AND PEACE.

So we have ascribed a name - JIVATMA to that aspect of us which is beyond the body and the mind.  The JiVATMA is a combination of Awarenes and Will Power.  Will Power represents the translation of our desires into action. Not all of our capabilities can be controlled through Will Power, because many of the capabilities are subconscious and are not accessible by the conscious mind. 

The question remains - WHO IS THE ONE ATTAINING LIBERATION? or in other words - WHO AM I? or in different words - WHO or WHAT IS THE "I" WITHIN ME?

Put even more differently, WHICH IS THE ONE ASPECT OF ME THAT NEEDS TO BE NOURISHED AND CARED FOR SO THAT I MAY ATTAIN PERMENANCE AND PEACE. 

This question has been at the heart of all internal explorations of the self for centuries. 

This question is the begining of the process of self realization.

DISCOVERING, KNOWING and REALIZING WHO THE SEEKER  IS IN ITSELF THE JOURNEY TO THE ATTAINMENT OF MOKSHAM. 

This internal journey is the key to attaining the state of permenance or MOKSHAM. The discovery of who we really are is one of the cornerstones of this journey. We attempt to present in the attached pages,  in simple language, the meaning of the question, its relevance, and the various paths to self knowledge that have been presented in the Puranas.