Explore the profound practice of the “Neti Neti” teaching, guiding seekers to realize their true self. By discerning and letting go of all temporary, changing experiences, thoughts, and attachments, one gradually uncovers the eternal witness within. This ancient wisdom helps dissolve illusions, leading to inner clarity, lasting peace, and bodha(realization) of ultimate truth beyond the material world.
What is the “Neti Neti” mantra?
The essence of Neti Neti is so subtle and profound that it is difficult to grasp it through words alone. Yet, to aid the mind, we have to rely on words. The literal meaning of Neti Neti is – “Not this, not this.” But the hidden indication within it is vast.
Whatever is within your understanding, whatever your mind contemplates, whatever object or thought it clings to – that is not you. Whatever comes within the range of your consciousness is transient, perishable, and therefore cannot be your true nature. The essence of Neti Neti is to reject whatever is changing, whatever comes into sight. Deny it and look within yourself to discover what your true existence is.
Who are you? This question is the deepest question of spiritual practice. Are you the body? If you are the body, then this body keeps changing every moment. Where is the body of childhood? Even the body of youth is not permanent. The body of old age also ultimately returns to dust. So can that thing, which keeps changing, truly be your form? No. The body is merely a medium, a vessel. You are not just the body.
Are you the mind? Thoughts come and go. They rise and vanish like clouds in the sky of the mind. If you were the mind, you would have to change every moment, because thoughts change every moment. Yet, within you, there is something that does not change, something that witnesses these thoughts. Therefore, you are not the mind either.
Make the Neti Neti mantra a medium.
The meaning of Neti Neti is that whatever comes before you, whatever enters your experience, you are not that. Keep denying it. Whatever is perishable, whatever changes, whatever comes and goes – it is not your true nature.
You have expectations from this world, you have desires. But think – what can this world give you? Every object in the world is perishable. Every relationship, every thing, every experience changes. This world itself is the embodiment of suffering. That which is inherently suffering, how can it give you happiness? If you want to see what suffering looks like, this world stands before you. Observe it carefully. It gives a glimpse of pleasure, but at its root, suffering is hidden.
When you yourself are false, when your identity is based on a false foundation, then how can this world, which has arisen from the same falsehood, be true? Therefore, clinging to this world has no meaning. To attain truth, one must deny falsehood. Truth and falsehood cannot coexist.
Use the practice of Neti Neti like a sword. This sword cuts through falsehood. As you keep denying, layer by layer, falsehood falls away. The question is – how long must you fight? As long as life remains in the body, this struggle continues. Delusions will rise repeatedly. But this war should not be a war of compulsion, like a soldier forced onto the battlefield. This war must arise from the deep yearning for truth in your heart.
If you want immortality, if you want to reach that infinite truth, then within you there must be a true thirst. Your pull must be towards truth. And this pull will happen only when you stop being attracted to falsehood. As long as one hand holds the thirst for truth and the other hand holds a bundle of falsehood, the journey cannot move forward. The practitioner must have this resolve – no more, now I want only truth, whatever sacrifices it may demand.
How to practice Neti Neti
On whom should you use Neti Neti? Your own mind will tell you. Whenever a thought arises and it is connected to this world, that is what pulls you towards falsehood. It will show you a semblance of pleasure, but in reality, it leads you only towards suffering. Therefore, before it drags you, you must deny it, annul it. This is the practice of Neti Neti.
Practitioners, the world appears as it does, but in reality, it is not so. You are also not as you know yourself. Everything is merely a play of the mind. The mind creates pictures and then accepts them as real. When you sleep, the same mind creates new pictures which you call dreams. And when you wake, a new world appears before you.
This is proof for you. When you are awake, this world seems real. When you dream, the dream itself seems real. And when you enter deep sleep, neither this world nor dreams remain – only darkness exists.
So now tell me, if the waking state world is true, then why is the dream not? And if the dream is false, then the waking state is equally false, because both are produced by the mind. And the void or darkness that comes in deep sleep is also not the truth, because it too changes. Truth is that which witnesses all three states – waking, dream, and deep sleep.
If you want to gain knowledge, you must remove ignorance. Mind and ego together create delusions. They must be cut. The mind repeatedly deceives, shows the allure of pleasure, and binds you internally. That is why the practice of Neti Neti is like a sword, cutting through every delusion.
When a practitioner looks seriously, it becomes clear that this entire world is false. This falsehood will repeatedly try to grasp you, to pull you. But when the yearning for truth awakens within you, you will firmly deny every falsehood.
Neti Neti is not just denial. It gradually takes you to a point where there is no need to deny anything. Because when all falsehood has fallen away, only truth remains. And to attain truth, you do not have to hold anything, you just have to let go of the false.
Remember, truth and falsehood cannot coexist. The moment falsehood is removed, at that very moment, truth reveals itself. Just as to remove darkness, you do not need to bring light, only lighting a lamp is enough. Similarly, when you practice Neti Neti and remove every falsehood, truth automatically illuminates itself.
