10.3 Causal Body (Kaarana Shareera)

What is the seed of the gross and subtle bodies? In other words, what is the intelligent and root material cause of their variety? By being transformations of the five elements. the root material cause of both these bodies is the three-fold-guna-endowed Prakriti or avyakta alone. A manifest body comes out of the unmanifest alone. The cause of the difference between bodies is the set of impressions of the prior actions and results, which are themselves caused by ignorance. By ignorance of its brahman nature, Prakriti as an alter-state is imagined. Alternately, the self element which is characterized by the imagination of cause-effect is called Prakriti in Vedanta scripture, or the Ishvara that is characterized by it. That is why, ignorance or absence of knowledge alone is considered the root cause in Vedanta. In Vedanta, maaya, ignorance, lack of knowledge, unmanifest or avyakta, "avyaakrita", Prakriti - are names of the same thing.
 
Therefore, the causal body of the individual soul is said to be "ignorance". Its indication is : "I do not know" - this knowledge. This body is experienced in deep sleep when the person neither desires objects due to the waking state, nor dreams like in the dream state. At that time, only inert vital forces are going on but no other activity or knowledge goes on. In reality, the functioning of the vital forces is not the experience of one's deep sleep state. Seeing someone else's vital forces during deep sleep, he superimposes that upon himself. After waking up from deep sleep, the person articulates his experience like this : "I was happily asleep, I did not know anything". It is clear that he had an experience of ignorance in this state. This ignorance alone is the cause. At that time, the witness, even while present, cannot describe his state after waking up, but in fact, describes the absence of a scene. It is clear from this dream state that the witness is the witness of both presence and absence both. Also, the witness of both absence and presence is one, because he who is the witness of waking and dream states alone is the viewer of their absence.
 
This ignorance is available in the waking and dream states as well. People say : I do not know brahman, I do not know this particular topic. This "not knowing" alone is the causal body.
 
"I am the witness brahman" - not knowing this alone is the root ignorance. This is also called "moolaavidyaa". "I do not know a certain topic - there is ignorance of a topic in this. This ignorance is called "toolaavidyaa".
 
It is the vow of the Upanishad that the knowledge of one gives the knowledge of everything (Mundaka 1.1.2). And as an example, clay is given in the context of all possible pots (Chhandoggya 1.1.4). When the causal body is destroyed through knowledge of brahman, then all objects are experienced by him as brahman.
 
Here one thought needs to be considered. Ignorance as a thought flow resides in the same intellect in which knowledge resides. That is why the subtle body is the refuge of ignorance. But ignorance itself is the causal body. We can say it differently. "I am the doer, enjoyer, happy, sad, wordly, disconnected individual soul" - this is the effect of ignorance. This counter knowledge and the desire and action that have taken refuge in it are aspects of the subtle body, whereas ignorance itself is the causal body.
 
Your diamond, the witness self, has lost itself in the garbage heap, waste basket of these three bodies. By carefully analyzing and discriminating the witness from these three bodies, separate the garbage from it. This is the goal of the tristate-body-witness-discrimination.