Zu_a! jnmaZtim SHUBH JANMAASHTAMI!
Happy Birthday Sri Krishna!!!
Hari OM
'Text-days' are for delving into the
words and theory of Advaita Vedanta.
We are now studying Aatmabodha. As
always, with each week, you are encouraged to review the previous teachings and
spend some time in contemplation of the meanings as the affect your life.
Please do consider purchasing the text. Remember, also, to recite the mangala charana before each study and
review the lessons before each new one.
There's
a slight shift in the teaching now, as the next shloka advises one method of
reaching to the Higher.
ini;Xy
iniolaepaxIÚeit netIit vaKyt>,
iv*adEKy<
mhavaKyEjIRvaTmprmaTmnae>.30.
Nishidhya
nikhilopadhiin-neti netiiti vaakyataH,
Vidhaadaikyam
mahaavaakyair-jiivatma-paramatmanoH ||30||
By the process of negation of the conditionings
(upaadhis) as per the scriptural statement 'it is not this, it is not this',
the Oneness of the individual soul and the Supreme Soul, as indicated by the
mahaavaakyas, has to be realised.
A
reminder that the mahaavakyas (the great statements) of the upanishads as
whittled down from many to four, key 'essence' statements according to the Veda
from which they arise. To review;
Ay< AaTma æü/ayam
aatmaa brahma - That Self is Brahman (from Atharva Veda)
tTv< Ais/tattvam
asi - That Thou Art (from Saama Veda)
Ah< æüaiSm/aham
brahmaasmi - I Am Brahman (from Yajur Veda)
The
pinnacle of Vedantic thought is contained within these. There are a number of
mahaavaakyas which form a 'stairway' to them, but these are given out in the
same way that the World Cup of soccer, or any other coveted sports prize are
put on display; so that those who are 'in the sport' know exactly what it is
they are working towards.
Thus,
in this shloka, Shankaraachaarya-ji tell us that by thinking on the unity
indicated by these four Master Statements, but even more specifically on the
statement of 'neti-neti', it is possible to attain to the Ultimate - aham
brahmaasmi. This is known as the process of negation.
Fine.
Intellectually that seems a fairly clear-cut teaching and something we can take
on board. Meditate on the fact that everything which is perceived, even our
very thoughts, are not The Self, they are not The Self. However, we cannot
expect this to be a magic switch and carry ourselves to Realisation with this
alone. The very placement of the mahaavaakyas indicates this. First we must
fully grasp the concept of Universal Consciousness and that this is what is
called as 'God' (Brahman, Aatman…) by all who seek their spiritual dimension.
In our every day, if we are alert and sensitive, we can already sigh deeply at
the wonder of Nature, the Cosmos, the uniqueness of being born a human being
within that. This must go one stage further, however. We must start to 'see'
the powering factor behind all which can be seen without such effort. The
essence of existence, here called Consciousness.
That
pure Consciousness is the Absolute Reality. That Self Is Brahman. This must be
our next step in spiritual evolution. Until we are firmly established in the
understanding and acceptance of this fact, we can then grasp what the teacher
means when he points at us and says "That Thou Art!" That which we
have now come to understand as the Universal Consciousness, a single Self
Presence, is nothing but our own self. Is it so? We must work hard in our
meditations and studies to determine this fact and make it come alive to our
own intellect and then move beyond even the intellect into the knowledge the
teacher already has of us… yes, yes, yes indeed, aham brahmaasmi! Realisation
dawns. One of the best ways for attaining this understanding is, as stated here
in shloka thirty, 'It is not this'… Self is none of this plurality, none of
this nonsense we currently call 'life'.
We
shall have a discussion around the vaakya 'tattvam asi' at a later stage; as a
short foray into the sort of thinking which is required to resolve arguments
and debates can be indicated here though, let it be known that there are
differences of opinion regarding this statement in particular. Those who wish
to support the idea of 'all is one except
for God, who remains separate from us' argument (Dvaitic -duality- thinking)
like to argue dualism is inherent in the use of 'that', indicating an other,
further compounded by saying 'it is not this'. Advaitic (non-duality) thinking,
however, moves beyond the semantics to the lakshana, the intended meaning. To
stick only at what the words say is to limit the spirit and a limited spirit
becomes a painful thing. An example of this can be worked out from the sentence
'this is that Gupta'. A friend you are talking with spots a fellow he thinks he
recognises but is not certain. You can confirm, 'yes, this is that Gupta!' The
friend is astounded. The fullness of this picture is the better understood by
the history that Gupta was known once in the local town of their birth as
nothing more than a pretty cloth-store keeper. Now, here in the capital city,
he is spotted and it is discovered he is a multi-millionaire fabric designer.
Gupta, however, is still Gupta. He was that,
he is now this, but is still one and the same person. If we took dvaitic
thinking, the argument would be that there are two Guptas existing in same
body.
Likewise,
the jiiva, the lowly self we think we are now, is at the same time That Self,
the 'multi-millionaire' spirit! We just have to rediscover our riches of bliss
and existence. All sense of duality dissolves.