Friday, December 23, 2011

Orthodoxy is path of ignorance.



 From ultimate standpoint the karma theory has no meaning, because the soul the innermost self is prior to the body and the world. The body and the world are impermanent; whereas the soul is in the form of consciousness is permanent.  The self is neither the waking entity nor the self is the dream entity but the self the formless soul. The soul is the formless substance and witness of the three states.  Waking and the dream are insentient. Consciousness gives sentient to the waking or dream. Without the consciousness the waking or dream are nonexistent.  The dream is nonexistent when waking takes place. Similarly the waking is nonexistent when the soul wakes up in its formless non-dual true nature. The waking or   both are illusion on the standpoint of the soul or consciousness. 

The whole illusion is created, sustained and finally dissolves as consciousness; therefore there is no second thing exits other than consciousness. Thus consciousness pervades in everything and everywhere in the all the three states. Hence it is non-dual.  Thus limiting the self to the waking entity or ego is the cause of the ignorance.  And ignorance is the cause of duality. Duality is the cause of experiencing the illusion as reality.

Orthodoxy accepts the concept of god in many forms. Sages of truth declare the Atman is Brahman.  That is soul, which is in the form of consciousness is ultimate truth or Brahman.  That is ultimate truth is God.  And ultimate truth itself is worthy of godhood.  

In Vedas the God has been described as:- 

         Sakshi (Witness)
         Chetan (conscious)
         Nirguna (Without form and properties).
         Nitya (eternal)
         Shuddha (pure)
         Buddha (omniscient)
         Mukta (unattached).

All these qualities are of the Atman (soul), which is the innermost self. It indicates clearly all the gods with form and attributes are mere imagination based on the false self.  Thus all individualized gods and goddesses are non-Vedic Gods. 


And also  in Yajurved says:-

Translation 1.

They enter darkness, those who worship natural things (for example air, water, sun, moon, animals, fire, stone, etc).
They sink deeper in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for example table, chair, idol etc.)
[Yajurved 40:9]

Translation 2.

"Deep into shade of blinding gloom fall asambhuti's worshippers. They sink to darkness deeper yet who on sambhuti are intent."
[Yajurveda Samhita by Ralph T. H. Giffith pg 538]

Translation 3.

"They are enveloped in darkness, in other words, are steeped in ignorance and sunk in the greatest depths of misery who worship the uncreated, eternal prakrti -- the material cause of the world -- in place of the All-pervading God, But those who worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time."
[Yajur Veda 40:9.]

So, Yajur Veda indicates that:- 

They sink deeper in darkness those who worship sambhuti. (Sambhuti means created things, for example table, chair, idol etc [Yajurved 40:9]

Those who worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time." [Yajur Veda 40:9.]


 When the religion of the Veda knows no idols than why so many gods and goddesses with different form and name are being propagated as Vedic gods. Why these conceptual gods are introduced when Vedic concept of god is free from form and attributes. 



Who introduced concept of god with attributes and attributeless gods, when Yajur Veda says: -   those who worship visible things, born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like), in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness.

When Yajur Veda  itself declares that:- "They are enveloped in darkness, in other words, are steeped in ignorance and sunk in the greatest depths of misery who worship the uncreated, eternal prakrti -- the material cause of the world -- in place of the All-pervading God, But those who worship visible things born of the prakrti, such as the earth, trees, bodies (human and the like) in place of God are enveloped in still greater darkness, in other words, they are extremely foolish, fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow, and suffer terribly for a long time."  -- than why believe  and worship non-Vedic  Gods and fall into an awful hell of pain and sorrow.  


Ish Upanishad declares: - Those people who have neglected the attainment of Self-knowledge and have thus committed suicide
10/11/12



Those people who have neglected the attainment of Self-knowledge and have thus committed suicide, as it were, are doomed to enter those worlds after death.



This is a condemnation of people who do not try to attain Self-knowledge. They are, in a real sense, committing suicide, for what can be worse than being a slave to sense enjoyment, completely oblivious of the real purpose of life, which is to be one’s  own master? 


In order to be one’s own master one has to realize the fact  that,  mind is identical with soul, which is Pure Consciousness, ever free, without name and form, and unconditioned.



The soul the innermost self is not subject to any modification, without beginning and end, beyond thought and speech. Soul is Existence Absolute, Knowledge Absolute, and Bliss Absolute. When soul know this it is free from ignorance. It is no longer experiences the birth, life, death and the world as reality. 



 If one does not try to know the truth of his true existence, he indeed experiences the illusory birth, life, death and the world as reality. The soul or consciousness the innermost self, is one without a second, complete in itself.



 Soul never moves. Soul is always still, always the same. All the moments are within the illusion. Within the illusion one feels moves everything and it makes the whole world go the way it does. It gives those who mechanically perform rituals go into darkness that is like being blind. But those who worship gods and goddesses remain permanently in ignorance experiencing the illusory experience of birth, life, death and the world (waking) as reality. 


As per the Ish Upanishad: - those who worship gods and goddesses go into a deeper darkness because they seek rewards for their worship


As long as there is the sense of "I' and "mine' within us, there can be no Self-knowledge. When one says "me' and "mine' you automatically identify himself with his body or ego. This shows that he is ignorant of the innermost Self, which is soul or Consciousness and which is also the Self of all.  



An ignorant person uses the words "I' and "mine'. He says: "I am so and so. “I AM GOD”,' and so on.



An ignorant person has many desires in his mind, and because of these desires he remains in the realm of duality. He has to have a body; otherwise he cannot satisfy his desires. But the more he tries to satisfy them, the more they grip his ego. This goes on endlessly. But it is given to a human being to think, reason, and discriminate. Thus he soon comes to realize that the path he has been following cannot give him satisfaction. He understands that he has to choose another path the path of wisdom or path of truth. As long as he does not take the path of Gnana or wisdom, he gropes in the ignorance and experiences the illusory waking experience (universe) as reality.


Orthodoxy is path of ignorance.  And ignorant worships mechanically perform the prescribed sacrifices without any thought as to why they are doing them.  


That is why Ish Upanishads says: - such people no wonder they grope in the dark. They are doomed unless someday the truth dawns on them that to save themselves they must seek Self-knowledge.



And also it says :- Worse, however, is the situation of those who worship vidya. The word vidya ¸ usually means "knowledge', but here it is used to mean "gods and goddesses'. Some people worship gods and goddesses so that they may someday attain the same status. They may get their desire fulfilled, but this will only delay their liberation. That is why the Upanisad says that they will be in deeper darkness.



Scholars say that the path of avidya [performing aganihotra and other sacrifices] and the path of vidya [worshipping gods and goddesses] produce different results. Wise men confirm this. [X]



Vidya and avidya both are hindrances to Self-knowledge, but vidya is even worse than avidya. The word vidya is used here in a special sense; here it means worshiping gods and goddesses. By worshiping gods and goddesses you will go after death to the world of gods and goddesses. But will that help you? The time you spend there is wasted, because if you were not there you could have spent that time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is your goal. In the world of gods and goddesses you cannot do that, and thus you go deeper and deeper into darkness.



Avidya is karma and therefore a hindrance. You perform avidya - i.e., you perform Agnihotra and other sacrifices. This is a roundabout way of purifying the mind, and it is also groping in the dark. But it may not have as heavy a toll on your time and energy as the other.


In pursuit of truth the ultimate truth has to be proved, not assumed. Pundits who take scriptures for granted are not Gnanis. 



Pundits teach that all is your-self, but none of them can show that this is so, none has analyzed it scientifically, and none can prove it. Rational proof is needed, so that one arrive at knowing truth i.e. wisdom; punditry is mere dogma, parrotism, repetition of what they read in scripture. Scriptures are not yardstick and scriptural truth is not proof.   Pundits take scriptures as authority.   Authoritarianism merely assumes as true what another says, but what has yet to be proved. 



Pundits have to test truth in this world not in the next world.  There is no proof other than blind belief based on the scriptures, belief is not truth.  So, doctrines are not the means to realize the ultimate truth. There is no need to follow them.

Gaudapada says: - the merciful Veda teaches karma and upaasana to people of lower and middling intellect, while jnana is taught to those of higher intellect.


For those who are incapable of inquiring and not yet ready for Self-Knowledge, the worship and glorifying of god and gurus is recommended.

Even, Mundaka Upanishad:- The rituals and the sacrifices described in the Vedas deal with lower knowledge. The sages ignored these rituals and went in search of higher knowledge. ... Such rituals are unsafe rafts for crossing The sea of samsara, of birth and death. Doomed to shipwreck are those who try to cross The sea of samsara on these poor rafts. Ignorant of their own ignorance, yet wise In their own esteem, these deluded men Proud of their vain learning go round and round Like the blind led by the blind.

So they clearly indicate rituals and theories are not meant for those who are searching for the higher knowledge or wisdom.   The path of wisdom is the only means.  



All the orthodox Advaitins indulge and immersed themselves in ritualistic oriented life style and follow the path of karma and upasana which is meant for lower and middling intellect   and orthodoxy is not for realizing the Advaitic truth or Brahman.  Many chose these orthodox scholars as their gurus. But these gurus are good to learn the conceptual Adavaita meant for those orthodox who believe their conduct oriented life style leads to Moksha [liberation].  But religious based Adavaita is not   the means to acquire self –knowledge or nondual wisdom.  Those who are seeking truth have to do their own homework in order to acquire self-knowledge.