When the Vedas and Upanishads declare that Consciousness or Atman
is actually nothing but Brahman, then why go round and round, by various
tortuous paths, like the blind led by the blind. One has to realize the fact
that, the mind is in form of universe. Trace
the source of mind and realize that source is consciousness. The mind rises
from consciousness as waking or dream and subsides as deep sleep.
In Mandukya Upanishad Brahman and Atman are defined as same:-
सर्वं ह्येतद् ब्रह्मायमात्मा ब्रह्म सोयमात्मा चतुष्पात् / sarvam hyetad brahmaayamaatmaa brahm soyamaatmaa chatushpaat –
Mandukya Upanishad, verse-2
All indeed is this Brahman; This Atman is Brahman; He, this
Atman has four steps/quarters.
While Brahman lies behind the sum total of the objective universe, some human minds boggle at any attempt to explain it with only the tools provided by reason. Brahman is beyond the senses, beyond the mind, beyond intelligence, beyond imagination. Indeed, the highest idea is that Brahman is beyond both existence and non-existence, transcending and including time, causation and space, and thus can never be known in the same material sense as one traditionally 'understands' a given concept or object.
Imagine a person who is blind from birth and has not seen anything. Is it possible for us to explain to him the meaning of the colour red. Is any amount of thinking or reasoning on his part ever going to make him understand the sensation of the colour red? In a similar fashion the idea of Brahman cannot be explained or understood through material reasoning or any form of human communication. Brahman is like the colour red; those who can sense it cannot explain or argue with those who have never sensed it.
Brahman is considered the all-pervading consciousness which is
the basis of all the animate and inanimate entities and material. (brahmano hi pratisthaham, Bhagavad Gita
14.27)
In Advaita Vedanta: - Brahman is without attributes
and strictly impersonal. It can be best described as infinite Being, infinite
Consciousness and infinite Bliss. It is pure knowledge itself, similar to a
source of infinite radiance. Since the Advaitins regard Brahman to be the
Ultimate Truth, so in comparison to Brahman, every other thing, including the
material world, its distinctness, the individuality of the living creatures and
even Ishvara (the Supreme Lord) itself are all untrue. Brahman is the effulgent
cause of everything that exists and can possibly exist. Since it is beyond
human comprehension, it is without any attributes, for assigning attributes to
it would be distorting the true nature of Brahman. Advaitins believe in the
existence of both Saguna Brahman and Nirguna Brahman; however they consider
Nirguna Brahman to be the absolute supreme truth.
Katha Upanishad says:
[Upanishads Nikhilananda]
Fools dwelling in darkness, but thinking
themselves wise and erudite, go round and round, by various tortuous paths,
like the blind led by the blind. (Ch II-5 P-14)
It indicates that the one who is ignorant
[darkness] of the true self (formless witness or soul) searches truth by
accumulating knowledge of every path and practice and uncertain about the
truth, and thinks every path leads towards reality. The ignorance of the true self
leads one towards unreality or hallucination.
This Ataman cannot be attained by the
study of the Vedas, or by intelligence, or by much hearing of sacred books. It is attained by him alone whom It
chooses. To such a one Ataman reveals Its own form. (Katha Upanishad Ch-II -23-P-20)
This Ataman cannot be attained through
study of the Vedas, nor through intelligence, nor through much learning. He who
chooses Ataman—by him alone is Ataman attained. It is Ataman that reveals to
the seeker Its true nature.( 3 –page-70 Mundaka Upanishad Upanishads by Nikilanada)
The above passages further proves that:
self-knowledge cannot be attained by study of the Vedas and intellectual
understanding or by bookish knowledge.
Therefore there is no use of studying the Vedas and other scriptures in
order to acquire the non-dual wisdom.
That is why Buddha rejected the scriptures, and even Sri, Sankara
indicated that, the truth lies beyond religion, concept of god and
scriptures.
For the same reason Raman Maharshi said fortunate
are the one who do not lose themselves in the labyrinths of philosophy. Bhagwan
says: Take Vedanta, for instance: it speaks of 15 pranas the names and
functions of it which the student is asked to commit memory. Will
it not be sufficient if he thought only one prana does the whole work of
maintaining the body? Again the antakaran is said to think, to desire, to will,
to reason etc. Why all these details? Has anyone seen antakarana, or all these
pranas? Do they really exist? They are conceptual divisions invented by
teachers of philosophy by their excessive analysis. Where do all these concepts
end? Why should confusion created and then explained away? Fortunate is the man
who does not lose him self in the labyrinths of philosophy, but goes straight
to the source from which they all arise. (GURU RAMANA .By S.S Cohen -vii Danger
of philosophy-Page -58-59)
Raman Mahrshi
further explains (in page 111/112- practical guide to know your self):-
Q: D: Is it not necessary to study the Vedas or at
least Prastnatraya[Bagvad gita.Dasoponishad and Brahma Sutra all with
commentaries] to ensure firm reazation?
A: Bhagvan: - No. Do you need all that to see
yourself? All that is intellectual wealth, useful in explain doubts and
difficulties if others rise them if you yourself encounter them in course of
thinking. But to attain realization, all that is not necessary. You want fresh
water to drink, but you do not require all the water of the river Ganges to
quench your quest.
They alone in this world are endowed with the highest
wisdom who are firm in their conviction of the sameness and birthlessness of Ataman.
The ordinary man does not understand their way. (Chapter
IV — Alatasanti Prakarana 95-P-188 in Upanishads by Nikilanada)
This passage indicates the fact that
everything is Atman (consciousness or spirit). The one who views and judges the worldview on the
base of his birth /body will not realize the fact that, the man including the
world is created sustained and finally dissolves as Atman. Thus Atman alone
is, and all else is mirage.
Thus self-knowledge is the aim of every
human being. Since everyone thinks the physical body is the self their aim is
misdirected and they focus their attention on materiality which makes one feel
the duality [waking] as reality.
Nisagadutta said: Millions are in search of the ultimate truth,
and only one in million will be able to grasp and realize it. By focusing more
attention on Ataman by talking, writing, discussing only of Ataman, the
conviction grows and becomes firmer and the duality will fade away as reality.
Ataman/sprit which is one’s true
identity will prevail as birth-less and deathless, eternal substance and
witness of the mirage called duality.
Therefore there is no need to study
scriptures, or indulge in god and guru glorification or performing religious
rituals in pursuit of truth. Since, they
are not the means to acquire non-dual wisdom. It is only waste of time and
effort to indulge in those things.
Gaudapada’s
rational exposition of Advaita: -
that whatever is
seen, whether external or internal, whether by the ordinary persons or yogis,
is unreal.
The essence of Mandukya's is: Do not
be satisfied with rituals, yoga etc. which are good in their own way, but
Inquire in to the nature of the mind. ? Brahman and Atman are things one can
never see. So seeker should not inquire into them. He has to inquire into
the world around him, which he can see. Analysis tells him it is
passing away every second. Everything is dying repeatedly. Where is it going?
Thus he follows up his investigation into what he can lay hands on. How can he
inquire into Atman which he cannot see? So first he must deal with the known
and seen, this inquiry leads up to the unknown in the end.
Thus it is necessary for the seeker of truth to know the fact
that, the body which is born, lives and dies is not the self. Since he is
taking the body to be the self, he is experiencing the duality as reality.
As Sage Sri,
Sankara says: When the
whole universe, movable and immovable, is known to be Atman, and thus the
existence of everything else is negated, where is then any room to say that the
body is Atman.
If body is not the Atman/self, then the karma theory has no meaning on the standpoint of the
truth. Thus no second thing exists other than Atman, therefore why to view the
worldview on the standpoint of the body as self when the body is the
false self, and the soul/Atman is the true self.
If body is not the self, then the birth, life, death and the universe are bound to be illusion. If birth, life and death are illusion then all conducts actions and their fruits are mere illusion. If body is not the self, then the existence of god, heaven and hell is mere illusion. If body is not the self then all religious beliefs of god is mere illusion. If body is not the self but the Atman [soul] which is in the form of consciousness is the true self, then there is no scope for second thing other than consciousness, therefore consciousness, which is Atman is Brahman or ultimate truth. The Brahman alone is real and eternal. Thus whatever is real eternal has to be identified as god. To identify the real and eternal, one has to overcome the ignorance caused by the illusion. To overcome the ignorance one has to acquire the Self-Knowledge.
The
individual life within the dream is reality with in the dream. Therefore waking
reality is also is reality within the waking. This waking is parallel dream and
dream is parallel waking. Only when self-wakes up in waking the dream becomes
unreal. When the self-consciously wakes up in its formless nondual true nature
in the midst of waking experience then
all the three states are mere mirage
created out of its formless nondual true nature.
The
form time and space within the dream are falsehood when waking takes place.
Similarly the form, time and space of the waking are also falsehood when wisdom
dawns. The wisdom dawns only when one realize the self is neither the waking
entity nor the dream entity. Thus it is erroneous to judge and reason and
conclude the ultimate truth on the base of waking entity and waking world
because waking experience itself is illusion.
A Gnani is one who attains the
nondual tranquillity in the midst of duality. A Gnani is in self –awareness and
he is fully aware of the fact that the form, time and space are mere mirage
created out of consciousness.
Empty
and calm and devoid of self is the nature of all things. No individual being in
reality exists. There is no end or beginning, nor any middle course. All is an
illusion, as in a vision or a dream. All beings in the world are beyond the
realm of words. Their ultimate nature, pure and true, is like the infinity of
space.- Prajnaparamita
This Empty and calm and
devoid of ‘I’ is the nature of the Self. The individual being or non being
exists in reality. There is no end or beginning, nor any middle course. The
diversity is an illusion or a dream. The formless substance and witness of the
diversity, which is the Consciousness /Christ /Self /Brahman/Buddha is beyond
the realm of words. The ultimate nature of the experience of diversity is, pure
and true, is like the infinity of space, which is God, Christ, Brahman.
The nature of true self is
oneness is incomprehensible and so any communication about it can only be an
interpretation of the ideas based on the false self/ego. Ignorance generates
doubts and confusion. Ignorance makes one experience the duality as
reality. Ignorance makes one view and
judge on the standpoint of false physical self/ego. Whatever is based on false
physical self/ego is bound to be falsehood because everything is viewed and
judged believing the duality as reality. Thus, one is unable to think beyond
duality.
Deeper understanding and
assimilation is required for self-realization.
It becomes difficult to understand and communicate about the oneness on
the base of false self. Thus rectifying
the true base is necessary from form base to formless base to understand and
assimilate and realize the non-duality.
