1
THE ATMAN
The
Atman
has
no
origin.
It
has
no
ancestry.
It
has
no
past,
and
no
future.
It
has
no
destiny.
Its
only
destiny
is
to
be
as
It
has
always;
to
remain
forever as It is.
The
Atman
exists
without
having
been
created.
It
has
no
preceding
cause.
There
is
no
reason
for
Its
existence.
It
exists
because
Existence
is
Its
nature.
It does not serve a function.
The
Atman
is
not
sustained
by
anything.
There
is
nowhere
from
which
It
derives Its power. It sustains Itself.
The
Atman
is
not
composed
of
anything.
There
is
nothing
from
which
It
derives Its substance. It is composed of Itself.
The
Atman
is
immutable.
It
does
not
undergo
transformation.
It
neither
evolves
nor
degenerates,
waxes
nor
wanes,
increases
nor
decreases,
flourishes nor fades.
The
Atman
is
the
True
Self—the
real
purport
of
the
term,
‘I’.
It
has
no
identity; It has no name. It cannot be classified.
The
Atman
is
not
a
field
of
energy;
neither
is
It
min
d
.
It
cannot
be
conceived
of,
yet
It
is
plainly
apparent.
It
is
obvious
to
the
extent
that
It
goes unnoticed.
The
Atman
is
brilliantly
resplendent,
though
It
cannot
be
seen
with
the
eye. It is positively tangible, though It cannot be touched with the finger.
The
Atman
cannot
be
measured.
Its
profundity
has
no
calculable
depth;
Its breadth no boundary; Its effulgence no magnitude.
The
Atman
has
no
status.
It
is
not
great
nor
small,
prestigious
nor
lowly,
learned nor ignorant, virtuous nor sinful.
The
Atman
has
no
aspiration.
There
is
nothing
It
endeavours
to
achieve
or
to attain. It neither sows nor reaps; It has no
karma
.
The
Atman
has
no
situation.
It
cannot
be
referenced
in
relation
to
something
else.
There
is
nothing
with
which
It
can
be
compared.
It
has
no
parallel and no opposite.
The
Atman
has
no
abode,
yet
It
is
not
vagrant.
It
resides
in
Itself.
It
resides
in
the
awareness
of
Its
Existence,
in
the
location
of
‘I
AM’.
It
dwells
in
the
boundless estate of Its own Bliss.
The
Atman
is
Brahman
—as
a
drop
of
water
is
water;
as
a
particle
of
light
is
light.
First Chapter excerpt from Verses for Meditation
Copyright Jonathan Kent 2022.