Swami Sarvapriyananda

Clips from "What is the Purpose of Life if I am 'That'? | Swami Sarvapriyananda" (YT Video)

Question 101: Everybody has to come to this question: If you're already brahmana, if you're already the absolute, then what is the purpose of appearing as a sentient being and going through all these struggles -- the suffering of life, and then the gradual awakening, and following the spiritual path, and coming to an enlightenment -- and realizing that your brahman, which you already were? So, what was the purpose of the whole thing?

Points to Ponder: It's like asking for a cause of causation. And to make that more clear, it's like... So, [about] 'space' and 'time', if you ask - "What is outside space? What is before time?"... Notice [that] when I ask 'before time' or 'outside space'... [When I say] 'before time', [it] means [that] I'm already assuming 'time'. 'Before' and 'after' are 'time' words. 'Before' and 'after' are tense ('past tense' 'future tense'). So, [what it means is that] these are 'time' words, which means you have already accepted [the concept of] 'time'. Only within 'time' does it make sense to ask 'before' and 'after' [i.e.] past, present, and future. Only when you have accepted the concept of 'space', [then] it makes sense to ask 'inside' and 'outside'. So, this universe is space, [and] so, what if a child may ask "What's outside the universe?" - Nothing... you can't answer that because 'outside' also already means 'space', [and] so, when there is no concept of 'space', [then] there's no concept of 'outside' 'inside'.