(Ahamkara: egoism; Buddhi: discerning, discriminating aspect of mind; Chitta: individual consciousness; Dwesha: repulsion, aversion, hatred; Jnana: wisdom, knowledge; Manas: oscillating, finite mind; Smriti: memory; Vritti: mental modification, thought wave, circle)
The tall and distinguished Detective Inspector Buddhi arrived punctually at Chitta Crime Bureau and was immediately ushered into the gloomy office of Superintendent Dwesha.
“Buddhi,” growled Dwesha, a brooding figure slumped behind a desk scattered with files and papers. “Sit. Of course you know why you’ve been summoned here. The infamous Yogi Jnana has escaped from Vritti Security Prison. As yet there are no clues to his whereabouts. Your job is to find him and bring him in. Here is a photo – take it.”
Buddhi took the photo and glanced at it. The mesmerising face of Yogi Jnana gazed back at him. “He looks benign to me. What was his initial crime?”
Dwesha’s moustache bristled and twitched. “Sedition, attempted assassination of Petty Officer Ahamkara – the list goes on. Just hurry up and get him.”
Buddhi left the Bureau and drove slowly towards Chitta City Centre, unsure of where to start his investigation. He parked on the colourful, rather dusty street known as Old Smriti Lane, and set off by foot down the sidewalk. Faces danced brightly before him in the late afternoon sunlight, familiar faces and voices that echoed through the dreamlike atmosphere. Buddhi found himself reminiscing about things past and childhood memories. For a while he forgot all about his assignment and it wasn’t until he reached the busy Manas Junction that he awoke from his reveries. The Junction was a maze of traffic jams, roundabouts, flyovers and signposts leading in all directions. Frenzied pedestrians scurried backwards and forwards across the streets as evening descended upon the city and a thousand stars burst into the sky.
Buddhi tried to make his way across a busy intersection, but cars, lights, people and sounds swirled around him and drew him into a vortex of spinning energy. Suddenly, remembering his mission, he pulled away and stood aside, observing all the activity. What was he doing? Think! He gathered his wits and strode purposefully away from Manas Junction via an ancient walkway, through crumbling pillars of stone and plaster. He walked quickly, lest the spin of the Junction should catch up and pull him back.
After a while Buddhi came to a vast, impenetrable wall, rising upwards into the skies, up to the stars and beyond his perception. As if in cruel jest, a graffiti message on the base of the wall read: Ahamkara was here – from the very beginning. Ahamkara will be here – until the very end. Ahamkara forever!
Buddhi knew this was the last port. With nowhere left to go he sat by the wall, engulfed in despair. Closing his eyes, he saw only blankness, darkness, nothingness. He felt on the edge of reality, of sanity. A great abyss seemed to be all that existed. Hours passed.
Then, late in the evening, Buddhi began to experience a new feeling arising from deep within, like a blissful breeze passing through the corridors of his mind. He began to perceive a subtle dimension, free from mental creations. His pain lifted.
And in this subtle realm, the luminous presence of Yogi Jnana appeared and the great sage spoke to him: “Buddhi, how many lifetimes have you been searching for me? You’re not a Detective Inspector for nothing! You know very well that you can’t find me in Chitta City, in the vortex of Manas Junction, nor amidst the sweet joys and sorrows of Old Smriti Lane. The subtle plane is where you can find me, this is the place where we can meet and be free from the pain of separation. Now carry me forever within you and know me in your mind and heart.”