“The karmi thinks of this world as ‘mine,’ and the jnani thinks ‘I am’ everything. The whole material conception of politics, sociology, philanthropy, altruism, etc., conceived by the conditioned souls is on the basis of this misconceived ‘I’ and ‘mine,’ which are products of a strong desire to enjoy material life.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.2 Purport)

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1. House

“See that house over there? We used to live in it. For quite some time, actually. Many great memories created in that place. You ask what happened. I don’t know, maybe it became too small for us, after a while. We ended up selling it and moved in to our current place. I hope whoever lives there now is happy.”

2. Car

“What happened to my car? Well, I gave it to my younger sibling. They are just starting out in adult life, in entering the workforce, and they needed a reliable mode of transportation. No, I did not sell it to them. I did not need the money. I loved that car, for sure, but I am driving something else now.”

3. Record

“You see that high score posted on the sign? That is mine. I did that. I know it seems impossible, but I am at this place a lot. There is something therapeutic about shooting those basketballs in succession, within a certain amount of time. I have no idea how I got such a high score, but I did. Anyway, I am sure someone else will break the record one day. It is not mine to hold onto forever.”

4. Position

“Well, I got promoted today. It was part of the annual compensation review. They tell you your bonus amount, the merit increase for salary, and if you are changing positions. I am now a vice president. Can you believe it? Oh, don’t worry about the old team. They will find someone else to fill that position. Someone qualified will eventually come along.”

5. Football

“What could we do? They held onto the ball. They maintained it through until the end of the game. They basically ran out the clock. We should have played better on defense. Or maybe we could have spent more time when we had the ball, when we were trying to score. Oh well, nothing you can do now.”

…

In Vedic literature we find repeated references to the concepts of “I” and “Mine.” These words essentially appear in quotes, for the purpose of emphasis. The idea is that mankind is deluded by these two concepts. They are led astray by them.

इच्छाद्वेषसमुत्थेन द्वन्द्वमोहेन भारत
सर्वभूतानि संमोहं सर्गे यान्ति परन्तप

icchādveṣasamutthena dvandvamohena bhārata
sarvabhūtāni saṃmohaṃ sarge yānti parantapa

“O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conquerer of the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities of desire and hate.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.27)

This might be puzzling to the casual observer. How is using the word “mine” a kind of delusion? How is it wrong? Is it not merely a way to express a certain truth? Is that not the purpose to words, after all? They are merely representations of factual occurrences and conditions within the world. They are symbols to translate into a meaning which explains the who, the what, the where, the why, and the how.

The delusion is based on the misapplication. We can start with the concept of “mine.” From the above review, we see that possessions change. I say that this thing or that belongs to me, but that is not really the case. If there is the potential to change possession, it means that no one really has a proper claim.

In the legal sense I may have possession of a house. I call it “my home.” This is valid, but the mentality can simultaneously be in delusion. The proper understanding is that I am temporarily within this home, given possession for the purposes of exclusivity for a brief period of time. In truth, I am really no different than a renter. This paradigm of a temporary residence applies across the entire life experience, from birth to death.

देहिनो ऽस्मिन् यथा देहे
कौमारं यौवनं जरा
तथा देहान्तर-प्राप्तिर्
धीरस् तत्र न मुह्यति

dehino ‘smin yathā dehe
kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā
tathā dehāntara-prāptir
dhīras tatra na muhyati

“As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.13)

It is a similar case with the use of “I.” If something can be removed, but the validity of “I” remains, then it means that the association is not valid. For instance, I say that I am a doctor. Okay, that may be the case, at the moment, but what happens when I am no longer a doctor? I lose my license to practice. I change occupations. I retire from the field. Have I then lost my identity?

I am a child. I am a student. I am an adult. I am a married man. I am a retiree. I am a patient at a clinic. These identifications are temporary. They can change, but the “I” remains. I simply shift the “am” part to another object.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explains that the “mine” delusion is for the karmis and the “I” delusion for the jnanis. The “mine” mistake is easy to see, but even with removing every kind of “I am”, there is still the vulnerability to think that the “I” represents the sum collection, the entire total.

The true meaning of “I” is in relation to spirit. I am a spirit soul. I am part and parcel of Brahman. There is no changing with this definition. I never become this “I” and it will never leave me. I am spirit soul because that is who I always am.

न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्
नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः
अजो नित्यः शाश्वतो ऽयं पुराणो
न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे

na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin
nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ‘yaṁ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre

“For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.20)

What is actually “mine” is the relationship to transcendence. My connection to the origin of spirit and matter. My link through consciousness. This “mine” is never incorrect, temporary, or invalid. I may have forgotten the truth. I may currently be suffering from ignorance, unaware of my link, but the acharya kindly reminds me. He explains what is truly “mine”, and for that reminder I am eternally grateful.

In Closing:

All as my possessions known,
Over my jurisdiction alone.

Something else try to take,
For your kingdom to make.

I am in this high occupation,
The past no longer a relation.

Truth that “I” and “mine” temporary applying,
Until acharya actual meaning supplying.

Categories: the five

Tags: god, hare krishna, hinduism, poem, poems, poetry, religion, vedanta