The ultimate appeal of the teaching of the Upanishads is to motivate all to not merely understand the theory of existence, but to realise God. This is the Brahma Jnana, the highest goal attainable since it leads to liberation. But this Jnana is hard to attain and requires tremendous effort and persistence, pointed out Sri Goda Venkateswara Sastrigal in a discourse.
One must have a burning desire to know the truth and engage in spiritual enquiry in earnest. The Bhagavad Gita makes it clear that among thousands of people, very rarely does anyone strive to attain peace of mind in earnest. Maybe one among such who strive thus is able to understand the truth of the Lord. It is only after many births that such a jnani understands and internalises the truth that “Vasudeva is everything.” Even if he begins to perceive this truth in theory and accepts to believe it implicitly, only when it pervades his entire consciousness does his jnana attain fruition. Such a person is a ‘mahatma’ for, he sees the presence of God in every atom of creation. The Chandogya Upanishad explains the Self as something “smaller than a grain of rice, smaller than a mustard seed, smaller than a canary seed or even smaller than the kernel of a canary seed. Yet this Self within the shrine of the heart of every being is greater than the earth, greater than the heavens and even greater than all the worlds.” If the all-pervading Paramatma is beheld in one’s heart, one can hold on to Him as is seen in the case of a Dhruva or a Prahlada who were constantly aware of His divine presence. Those who have the desire will surely succeed and realise that there is none bigger than Him and that He is always everywhere.
