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.
[NB; there have been some technical difficulties getting sound-clips
organised… continuing to work on production, but we may have to skip chanting
practice for this. It is not essential to the learning - though chanting does
give focus and charm to the study!]
baexae=Nysaxne_yae
ih sa]aNmae]EKsaxnm!,
pakSy
viûvJ}an< ivna mae]ae n isXyit.2.
bodho.anyasaadhanebhyo
hi saaxaanmoxaiksaadhanam.
paakasya
vahnivajGYaanaM vinaa moxo n sidhyati..2..
2: Just as the fire is the direct
cause for cooking, knowledge is the direct means of Liberation. Compared to all
other forms of discipline, Knowledge of the Self is the only direct means of
Liberation.
In the mangala charana itself, the teacher had made clear who was
the prime shishya for higher Vedantic teaching. There are some who may hear that
shloka and consider it a possibility that practice of austerities alone might be a path to moksha. The teacher now seeks to dispel any such thought. The
austerities are merely purifiers of the physical body such that the mind can
focus on the gaining of the proper Knowledge and this is emphasised by the
saying '..compared to all other forms of discipline..'
It is not that other disciplines/paths cannot lead one to liberation
- but that if one is truly desirous and wishes the most direct path, then Jnaan
alone is it. As with any 'direct path', this comes with difficulties. Any hill,
any mountain, traversed directly upwards tries the fittest of the fit! It is
for this reason that it is said one must be well seated in sadhana for this
path.
What is the cooking analogy? This is one of the methods of conveying
concepts to beginners. We all know that if we do not switch on the oven, the
bread will not bake; without the heat on the hob, the vegetable cannot boil.
Food is food and can be prepared many ways, but the most direct way of ensuring
it is edible is to place it on fire (heat). We go through all the preparations
- peeling, chopping, kneading, shaping - putting everything into the
appropriate pot or tray and even placing the utensils upon the stove; but
unless we light the fire, nothing will advance in terms of making the food
edible. Fire is therefore the direct means of the food being 'liberated'.
Similarly, the performance of rituals, offerings, austerities and so forth,
whilst definitely a boost to one's spiritual growth, are not of themselves
the 'heat' providing the finishing off of our sorrows.
It is only with Knowledge of the purpose of puja, japa, tapas and
their application, that they become alive and truly useful to us. Then, when it
comes to it, that final 'boiling' to bring us to liberation, Knowledge alone is
the key. This point is looked at again in the next shloka.
Aivraeixtya
kmR naiv*a< ivinvtRyet!,
iv*a=iv*a<
inhNTyev tejiStimrs<"vt!.3.
avirodhitayaa
karma naavidyaaM vinivartayet.
vidyaa.avidyaaM
nihantyeva tejastimirasaMghavat..3..
3: Action cannot destroy ignorance,
as it is not opposed to ignorance. Knowledge does verily destroy ignorance,
just as light destroys deep darkness.
Often, when we are feeling that things are not quite working, or our
patience is weak, we are inclined to think that 'doing something' will move
things along. (We are talking here of things like the afore-mentioned puja,
japa, tapas - not the everyday necessary activities and work.) Certainly, there
may be some perceivable and immediate movement from our action, but in
spiritual terms what has been achieved really? The action may have salved
feelings of tension, frustration, impatience; on the positive side it may have
served as an anchor, a focus, a rung on the ladder of upliftment and, for sure,
we will feel good about ourselves for having sat before the Lord and
worshipped. Has such action truly brought us closer to sitting in Brahman,
however? What is more, action can very easily become automatic. Our mind is not at all focused on what the hands are doing or what the mouth is reciting. Actions can be performed with minimal or no Knowledge.
At this juncture it is important to be clear about the capital
letter Knowledge; when used this way in Vedanta, it is Knowledge of the Supreme
Consciousness, the Higher Self, which is being referred to. This is considered
the ultimate Knowledge and all other knowledges are parts of that, just as all
souls are part of the One Soul… as raindrops are part of the ocean. One might
be the greatest professor of the highest science - but without this final piece
of the puzzle, all that knowledge holds no value, spiritually.
It is an interesting thing that those closest to the research of the
origins of the universe - the physicists - often will decry 'God' and stick to the cold, hard facts within the physical realm. Then, most who reach a certain advancement, will start
to look with a level of awe and begin to ponder the possibilities of 'something
more'. Notice that in pure Vedantic
understanding, 'God' is not referred to. The term for that which is the
'something more' is Brahman, though other terms are also used - Aatman, Self,
Sat-Chit-Aananda (Truth-Consciousness-Bliss). With each passing year,
ever-deeper discoveries of the physical mysteries are drawing physicists closer
to the spiritual mysteries as described by the Rsis of millennia past! Thus it
might be said that the actions of the scientists, whilst not destroying the
ignorance which provides Liberation of the human being, are certainly stepping
stones. What would be required of each of them would be to surrender to inner
researches of the same magnitude. Creating their own, personal 'big bang'. The
continual insistence on staying with the purely physical blocks them from the
best of all discoveries.
If the Aatman be, as described by the Rsis, ever-present,
all-pervasive, etc., then It is not to be striven for, or obtained from
somewhere...because it is already here, within us.
Thus, even actions considered as divine do not provide a direct
means of connecting with that Knowledge.
The analogy used in this shloka is that of light in the deepest
darkness. In a dark room, even if we think we know it well, if we go looking
for something it is very difficult to find. If, however, we switch on the lamp,
our search is rather easier. Thus it is with scriptural Knowledge - it is the
torch in our hands, leading us to the source of all light - but only when we
enter that final stage of understanding can we say that we ourselves
illuminate. The simple fact is that the light is already shining, but due to
the ignorance, the avidya, which has us believing we are these fleshy, finite
critters.. that matter matters... we are stuck in spiritual ignorance.