Have you ever wondered or asked yourself: What is the ultimate goal of life?
This is a question which has puzzled countless individuals over the long span of human life. Now we will address it. First let us take a look at the aspects of life which don’t seem to qualify as “ultimate” goals:
Getting a good job, having a house, having a partner, having a big bank account, having good health, having name and fame, having assets like gold, cars, etc.
If these were the ultimate aims of human life, then people would be satisfied after acquiring them, but are they? Are they even happy or fulfilled?
Do we stop seeking after acquiring any of these things or is there more to life than just having “things”?
According to the most ancient Vedic scriptures, the ultimate aim of human life is to attain union with God, union with the immortal Self, the state of enlightenment. Enlightenment is a state of eternal bliss, infinite peace, unshakable union with the wholeness of life itself. This is the state in which “becoming” ceases. The long search for inner contentment is over. We have come “home” to the ultimate reality of who we are. We have known THAT having known which all else is known. THAT is the Self.
The Self is “known’ by transcending the active, surface level of the mind and experiencing the field of BEING, pure consciousness, the very source of thought. Pure consciousness is a state of “knowingness”. It is a state of inner silence in which consciousness is conscious of itself. The subject-object duality has vanished and only the state of pure BEING remains.
In the Vedic literature, the Self is called the Atman. In the text called, Self-Knowledge by Sankara, it says:
“The nature of the Atman is Eternity, Purity, Reality, Consciousness and Bliss, just as luminosity is the nature of the sun, coolness of water, and heat of fire.”
The knowledge acquired by direct experience of the Self destroys ignorance. Only direct, experiential knowledge of the Self is able to dispel the illusion of ignorance concerning our true nature. Only self-knowledge can clear all doubts, fears and inner conflicts about the ultimate goal of human life. Transcendence is the elixir which removes the impurities of the mind and expands our vision to embrace the totality of life. Only then are we able to live the unbounded fullness of our human potential, and realize the ultimate aim of our life.
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barbara ann briggs 