Sri,Sankara is rightly said :- One must
first know what is before him. If he cannot know that, what else can he know
or understand? If one gives up the external world in his inquiry, he cannot
get the whole truth.
Some of the thinkers hold views of illusion which are entirely incorrect and untenable because they hold the false self (waking entity or ego) as real self and false experience(waking or universe) as reality.
Some of the thinkers hold views of illusion which are entirely incorrect and untenable because they hold the false self (waking entity or ego) as real self and false experience(waking or universe) as reality.
The Advaitic orthodoxy hold the birth,life,death and world as reality whereas the great sage Sri,Sankara declares the universe is myth. Thus the conduct oriented orthodoxy ,which believes in rebirth and reincarnation , Karma , individualized god ,sin ,heaven and hell holds no water because the birth,life,death and the world are reality within the illusion.
In Brahma Sutras Sri, Sankara says: Brahman is the cause of the world, whereas in Mandukya he denies it.
In Brahma Sutras Sri, Sankara says: Brahman is the cause of the world, whereas in Mandukya he denies it.
This may be because that at the lower stage of understanding, the former
teaching must be given, for people will get frightened as they cannot
understand how the world can be without a cause, but to those in a higher
stage, the truth of non-causality can be revealed.
That is why Gaudapada says that: - The merciful Veda teaches karma and Upaasana to
people of lower and middling intellect, while Jnana is taught to those of
higher intellect.
Goudapada suggest that the religious paths and worship of guru and
conceptual god are lower and middling intellect. But in this modern world people are sharp
enough to understand and assimilate ultimate truth or Brahman or god. Thus
people who wants higher truth then it is high time to discard the lower
knowledge and move ahead to realize the ultimate truth, which is Brahman or
God.
62. A disease does not leave off if one simply utter the name of
the medicine, without taking it; (similarly) without direct realisation one
cannot be liberated by the mere utterance of the word Brahman.
64. Without killing one’s enemies, and possessing oneself of the
splendour of the entire surrounding region, one cannot claim to be an emperor
by merely saying, ‘I am an emperor’.
Thus Sankara
clearly suggests direct realization of truth is not possible through punditry
or orthodoxy. Why to follow the
traditional path, which does not yield any fruit. Therefore, Seeker of truth has to take the
direct path and avoid losing precious time and effort loosing himself in
philosophical studies and traditional path.
When Sri,Sankara declares:- the world is myth and Brahman alone is real
then why worships the guru and gods of
this unreal world . That is why Veda bars such worships and
people who indulge in such activities will suffer and sink into darkness. And Upanishads says self-realization is the
human goal. Therefore, one has to strive only for self-realization or truth
realization.
That is why Gaudapada says that: - The merciful Veda teaches karma and Upaasana to
people of lower and middling intellect, while Jnana is taught to those of
higher intellect.
Sage Sri, Sankara varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never told them to give their particular religion or beliefs or metaphysics completely; he only told them to give up the worst features of abuse: at the same time he showed just one step forward towards the truth.
That is why Sri Sankara, indicated in Bhaja Govindam says: - [Jnana Viheena Sarva Mathena Bajathi na Muktim janma Shatena] - one without knowledge does not obtain liberation even in a hundred births, no matter which religious faith he follows.
As one peeps carefully inn the annals of religious history we find:- Sankara was extremely
precise and careful in his choice of words. He was no fool in writing.
Sage Sri, Sankara did more than write books or initiate Sanyasins: He brought India into a unity as a nation. He told men: Worship what you wish, remain in your particular religion, but remember also you are part of a larger whole.
Few Pundits have caught the spirit, they are merely fond of his words. For his spirit is that of an appeal to reason, with scripture dragged in as a second and lesser support afterwards. So many years have passed since Sage Sri, Sankara appeared; yet it is very hard to find his true teachings understood anywhere in India today. Why? Because so few could rise to his level. Hence Ramanuja, Madva and others came to supply the common demand.
The story in Sankara's life of going to Benares and occupying the body of another man and then having sex intercourse with his wife, is a cock and bull story hiding the real fact. He had the scientific spirit and when told by Saraswathi the woman that he was talking emptily about sex, being a Sanyasi, he at once went to learn the truth by having actual intercourse himself and thus learning by experiment and observation.
Sage Sri, Sankara has used the phrase "the jungle of words." This is his acknowledgment of the need of Semantics.
Sage Sri, Sankara himself has warned us not to use ambiguous words, and to practice semantic analysis in his book "Definition of one's own Self. [" Page 199, v.24 of "Sankara's Selected Works]
Sage Sri, Sankara founded his Advaita Vedanta either on reason independent of sruti or on sruti confirmed by reason." Sri, Sankara's commentary on the Mandukya Upanishad, II, 1: This [the unreality of duality] is borne out by the Srutis ... But it is possible also to show the unreality of the object world even from pure reasoning, and this second chapter is undertaken for that purpose.
Sri, Sankara himself had often said that his philosophy was based on Sruti, or revealed scripture. This may be because Sri, Sankara addressed the ordinary man, who finds security in the idea of causality and thus in the idea of God—and Revelation is indispensable to prove the latter. He believed that those of superior intelligence, have no need of this idea of divine causality, and can therefore dispense with Sruti and arrive at the truth of Non-Dualism by pure reason.
Dualists and realists who believed in the practical life and practical world as reality and others came to supply the common demand of the mass mindset who are immersed in the material side of their life.
Orthodox non-dualists, qualified non dualists and dualists say that, only the Brahmin-born could attain liberation. This therefore rules out all non-Brahmins! Sankara on the contrary taught that anyone could attain.
Many Vedantic logical books are vitiated in value because they do not inquire into the ego. The ego, body and the world appears together and disappears together as deep sleep. The 'ego ' is always changing as any other part of the world.
If one has one idea--say ego, he cannot have ultimate truth or Brahman, one idea leads to several. The treasure of Brahman is coiled by illusion or “I”. Give up immediately identification with ‘I’ or mind or universe or waking. .
BRAHMA SUTRAS
Sage Sri, Sankara did more than write books or initiate Sanyasins: He brought India into a unity as a nation. He told men: Worship what you wish, remain in your particular religion, but remember also you are part of a larger whole.
Few Pundits have caught the spirit, they are merely fond of his words. For his spirit is that of an appeal to reason, with scripture dragged in as a second and lesser support afterwards. So many years have passed since Sage Sri, Sankara appeared; yet it is very hard to find his true teachings understood anywhere in India today. Why? Because so few could rise to his level. Hence Ramanuja, Madva and others came to supply the common demand.
The story in Sankara's life of going to Benares and occupying the body of another man and then having sex intercourse with his wife, is a cock and bull story hiding the real fact. He had the scientific spirit and when told by Saraswathi the woman that he was talking emptily about sex, being a Sanyasi, he at once went to learn the truth by having actual intercourse himself and thus learning by experiment and observation.
Sage Sri, Sankara has used the phrase "the jungle of words." This is his acknowledgment of the need of Semantics.
Sage Sri, Sankara himself has warned us not to use ambiguous words, and to practice semantic analysis in his book "Definition of one's own Self. [" Page 199, v.24 of "Sankara's Selected Works]
Sage Sri, Sankara founded his Advaita Vedanta either on reason independent of sruti or on sruti confirmed by reason." Sri, Sankara's commentary on the Mandukya Upanishad, II, 1: This [the unreality of duality] is borne out by the Srutis ... But it is possible also to show the unreality of the object world even from pure reasoning, and this second chapter is undertaken for that purpose.
Sri, Sankara himself had often said that his philosophy was based on Sruti, or revealed scripture. This may be because Sri, Sankara addressed the ordinary man, who finds security in the idea of causality and thus in the idea of God—and Revelation is indispensable to prove the latter. He believed that those of superior intelligence, have no need of this idea of divine causality, and can therefore dispense with Sruti and arrive at the truth of Non-Dualism by pure reason.
Dualists and realists who believed in the practical life and practical world as reality and others came to supply the common demand of the mass mindset who are immersed in the material side of their life.
Orthodox non-dualists, qualified non dualists and dualists say that, only the Brahmin-born could attain liberation. This therefore rules out all non-Brahmins! Sankara on the contrary taught that anyone could attain.
Many Vedantic logical books are vitiated in value because they do not inquire into the ego. The ego, body and the world appears together and disappears together as deep sleep. The 'ego ' is always changing as any other part of the world.
If one has one idea--say ego, he cannot have ultimate truth or Brahman, one idea leads to several. The treasure of Brahman is coiled by illusion or “I”. Give up immediately identification with ‘I’ or mind or universe or waking. .
BRAHMA SUTRAS
Brahma Sutras, i.e. "Vedanta Sutras" by Badarayana, are intended for those of middling intellects, not for those who have the best brains: it is a semi-theological, semi-philosophical work; it starts with the assumption that Brahman exists.
The opening sentence is "All this is Brahman.” But nobody knows or has seen Brahman. If we say "All this is wood" and show a piece of wood, the words are understandable. Suppose you have never seen wood. Then what is the use of such a sentence? It becomes meaningless when the object indicated is seen by none. Hence the Brahma Sutra opening is equivalent to "All this is X". Both have no meaning so long as they are not understood, if we take them as the data to start from. It is for this reason that I say the book is intended for theological minds, because it begins with dogma although its reasoning is close. For it starts with something imagined.
A man who describes Sankara's philosophy as negative
(because of his Neti, Neti) does not know that this is applied only to the
world of the Seen; the critic ignorantly believes that it is also applied to
the Seer. Vedanta never negates the seer, only the seen.
