Seeing the Self - Shri Bijaykrishna

Shri Bijaykrishna Chattopadhyaya, in his book RtambharA gives these two analogies for becoming aware of the presence of the AtmA.

If one sees a house in a distance, with light streaming out of the windows, one assumes without seeing it directly, that there is a lamp lit up inside. When one looks into a mirror, one sees the images reflected by it without generally observing the mirror; but one can divert attention and actually look at the mirror itself. Shri Bijaykrishna used these analogies for observing our perceptions and the objects in the world leading to these perceptions, to lead us to an awarenness of the self.

These are reminiscent of the analogies in the dakSiNA murti stotram by shrI shankarAchArya. In verse 1 there is a reference that the universe being like the reflection of a city viewed in the mirror of the self.  Verse 4 tells about  a lamp lit inside a pot with many holes being like the self emanating through the senses.

Dr. Mahanambrata Brahmachari

One of the most profound Vaishnava scholar saints of modern times, Mahanambrata Brahmachari composed a series of insightful expositions and commentaries on many of the classic Indic scriptural texts. Mahanambrataji was born in Barishal district of what is now Bangladesh in 1904.

He came to the United States in 1933 to speak at the World Fellowship of Faiths. He earned his Doctorate degree in religious studies from the university of Chicago in 1937. In the next 60 years he authored over 50 books. He is one of the most articulate exponents of dharma and philosophy of the Indian subcontinent.