THE IMMORTAL AHA EXPERIENCE
If the thirty-third layer above the half measure represents the shore of this world, then the fortieth layer represents the shore of the other world, the imperishable and immortal world of the self.
In the Vedic alphabetical model, the shore of this world was represented by ha, the final consonant in the classical Sanskrit alphabet. Due to its final position in the sequence of thirty-three letters (or thirty-three layers), it can be argued that ha is transformed automatically into the soft vocalic sound aha, which is written in the form of two dots placed one above the other (like a colon).
In actuality, however, ha is not the final letter or layer. It is merely the last of the thirty-three letters that pertain directly to the golden yolk of the cosmic egg and its surrounding white. There are six additional layers beyond the thirty-third that the soul must traverse to reach the shore of the other world. In the Agama texts1 of the Vedic tradition, these additional layers were represented by six extraordinary consonants (or sets of consonants), which were included in the older Vedic alphabet but not in the later classical alphabet. Rather than being simple consonants, these extraordinary letters are complex consonants produced by the process of phonetic conjunction (sandhi).2 They were used to represent the six additional layers because those layers serve to join the two shores.
In this expanded alphabetical model, the shore of the other world was represented by the unique vowel known as the visarga (the emitter), which is pronounced as the softly aspirated aha. This is precisely the Sanskrit letter into which ha is transformed when it appears as the final letter of a word or sentence, in which case it is written in the form of two dots placed one above the other.
We can say, then, that there are two types of Aha experience: The first is attained on the scale of the thirty-third layer, when the soul stands on the shore of this world and realizes the two truths about the universe (that it is both created and uncreated at the same time).
Because this marks the final, thirty-third realization in the soul’s ascent through the layers of the created universe, the consonant ha can be taken as the final letter in the sequence. As soon as the soul steps into the cosmic sea that lies beyond the shore of this world, however, this thirty-third realization ceases to be final. It becomes instead an initial realization regarding the uncreated reality of the universe. In this case, the thirty-third layer can be represented by the initial form of ha, as though it were the first consonant in a sequence of letters.As the soul traverses the seven cosmic shells represented by ha and the six extraordinary consonants, the created appearance of the universe is dissolved in awareness. This means that the universe assumes an increasingly uncreated appearance. When the soul finally washes upon the shore of the other world (represented by the fortieth layer) the dissolved universe is reconstructed in awareness on the basis of pradhana, the truly imperishable substance of pure consciousness.
This reconstructed form of the universe, cognized on the scale of the fortieth layer, was represented by the final form of ha as though it were the final letter or layer in the sequence. According to the system of Vedic phonetics, the final form of ha represents not a consonant, but one of the sixteen vowels of the classical Sanskrit alphabet, pronounced as aha and written in the form of two dots placed one above the other, like a colon.
This unique vowel identified with the fortieth layer was assigned two complementary names: As we have seen, it was called the visarga (the emitter), and it was also called the visarjaniya (that which is emitted). These two represent the two complementary aspects of the ultimate Aha experience attained on the scale of the fortieth layer. When the soul ascends to this layer, it realizes simultaneously two truths regarding its existence: that it is immortal and that it is mortal. The immortal aspect of the soul represents the emitter, the one immortal self established on the shore of the other world who emitted all mortal souls in the very beginning and who has never descended into creation. The mortal aspect of the soul represents that which is emitted, the mortal soul that was emitted into creation in the very beginning and covered with the veil of ignorance.
After evolving over the course of billions of years and becoming enlightened eventually, the emitted soul ascends the divine ladder and returns to its original source.When it ascends to the scale of the fortieth layer, the soul realizes its identity with the emitter, that its whole evolutionary journey was but a dream in the night and that it was never actually emitted in the first place. It then realizes two truths: that it is both the one immortal soul that never descended into creation and the mortal soul that has descended into creation. The emitter is immortal, while that which is emitted is mortal. The two truths realized on the scale of the fortieth layer can therefore be summarized by the two opposing statements “I am mortal” and “I am immortal.” The paradoxical synthesis of these is represented by the Sanskrit word tat (that), which is a synonym for Brahman, the ultimate reality.
This understanding is also reflected in the Hebrew tradition of kabbalah on which the fortieth layer (or sephirothic emanation) counted in the ascending direction is represented by the cryptic formula ESYR AHIH ESYR (“I am that I am”)—“I am mortal” and “I am immortal.” As in the Vedic tradition, the synthesis of the two opposing statements is denoted here by the term that.
In the Egyptian tradition, the fortieth layer was represented symbolically by the Hall of Osiris, where the soul who has just arrived on the shore of the other world is greeted by the family of truly immortal souls (the Grail family) and undergoes its final judgment. This hall was also known as the Hall of Two Truths. The final judgment that takes place there was represented symbolically by a weighing ceremony involving a cosmic balance. On one side was placed the heart of the aspirant, which was then weighed against the feather of Maat, the Egyptian goddess of cosmic truth, harmony, and justice. The heart of the aspirant represents the mortal aspect of the soul, and the feather of Maat represents its immortal aspect.
In order to pass the final judgment, mortality must be balanced with immortality. If one aspect outweighs the other, then, according to the Egyptian texts, the soul will be rejected and cast back into the dark abyss of the cosmic shells to be further consumed by the demons of its own false imagining until it attains a cosmic state of balance.We can conclude, then, that the Vedic, Egyptian, and Hebrew traditions shared a similar understanding regarding the nature of the fortieth layer, which represents the shore of the other world. To become a citizen of the other world, or a member of the immortal Grail family, the soul must attain a state of balance regarding the two truths: that it is both mortal and immortal.
There is a reason for this requirement: If the soul views itself as more mortal than immortal, then it will possess, naturally, an attachment to the cosmic egg from which it has “hatched.” In this case, its own cosmic egg will be favored over all the other cosmic eggs that exist within the bosom of the infinite. The Supreme Being, however, shows no such favoritism—all of the cosmic eggs must be treated equally. Conversely, if the soul views itself as more immortal than mortal, then it will view the cosmic eggs as different from the self or unrelated to its immortal existence and will therefore have no interest in maintaining them. The Supreme Being, however, shows no such lack of interest—all of the cosmic eggs must be maintained at all times.
To be identified with the Supreme Being, then, the soul must balance the two truths in its awareness so that both the infinite, immortal world and the finite, mortal world are simultaneously upheld in a state of equanimity.