Friday, September 29, 2006
Story 36 – Story of Prahlada – 7
Atma nityo avyayah shuddha ekah kshetrajna aasrayah
Avikriyah svadrik heturvyaapako asangyanaavritah
Atman or Consciousness is eternal, immutable, pure, one alone, the resider of the temple of body, substratum (support for everything), changeless, self-seer or self-conscious, cause of the world, all-pervasive, unattached and without any veil or obstacle.
Explanation
We will discuss today the nature of Atman through the dvadasha lakshanas (12 characteristics) that Prahlaada explains to his co-students.
What is Atman?
Atman is the Self or the ultimate reality of Lord. The Vedas speak about the ultimate reality as Brahman, Paramatman, Ishwara, Lord, Atman, Self etc. All these different terms denote the same entity – the ultimate reality which is of the nature of Sat (existence), Chit (Consciousness) and Ananda (bliss).
The scriptures also speak about the ultimate reality of Lord as the one and only entity existing. All other things which seem to be present are only mere illusions in the reality of Lord even as the dream world & its objects are only illusions in the dreamer. Thus what really exists is only the ultimate reality of Lord. Differences are only names and forms of the Lord. As various gold ornaments (having different names and forms) are only an illusion in gold – they all are ultimately gold alone – similarly the dual world that we seem to perceive is only an illusion of names and forms in the Lord. Remembering this reality, let us know see the lakshanas given by Prahlaada.
Nityah - Eternal
Atman is Nitya or eternal. As explained, the Lord of the nature of Consciousness is ever present. Time which is divided into past, present and future itself is dependent on Consciousness. If there is no Consciousness (the seeker is not conscious), then there is no time at all. Thus the Lord of the nature of Consciousness is eternal or ever existing. Nitya is with respect to time but this can be extended to space and causation as well. Desha (space), kaala (time) and vishaya (causation) are the three limiting adjuncts of anything in the world. The Lord as he is the substratum of these three is not limited by these. Thus the Lord is ever present (eternal), all-pervasive and the primal cause of everything (as the substratum of illusory world).
Avyayah – Immutable
As the Lord is eternal, he cannot undergo any changes. That which undergoes changes is subject to birth and death. The body that we see undergoes constant changes and hence it dies. Science accepts that cells are continuously changing as they take birth and die. Thus that which is changing cannot be eternal as it will cease to exist one fine day. The Lord as he is eternal cannot undergo any changes. Since the Lord cannot have any changes, he is immutable. We have to remember constantly that the Lord mentioned by the scriptures is not some Vishnu or Siva distinct from the seeker – the Lord is the very nature of the seeker – there is no difference between the seeker & the Lord as whatever exists is the Lord alone – it is only due to ignorance of one’s own very nature of Lord that a seeker finds himself as different from the Lord.
Shuddha or pure
Sankara in his Brahma Sutra Bhashya defines the Self as Nitya Shuddha Buddha Mukhta or ever pure, enlightened and liberated. Any entity which has parts alone can have contacts with other things. The body comes in contact with objects because the body has the parts of hands, legs etc. That which is devoid of parts cannot have any contact with anything. It is only due to contact with an external entity that impurity is caused – rather impurity is mixing of an external entity. Aakasha or space is partless and hence it doesn’t have any contact with anything. The Lord from whom space has come cannot be with parts. If the Lord is with parts, the space created from the Lord also should have parts. Thus the Lord is partless – this is what Sruthi calls as Nishkala (without parts). Since the Lord is without parts, therefore the Lord cannot have contact with anything else. Since the Lord cannot have contact with anything, therefore there cannot be any impurity in the Lord. Thus the Lord is ever pure.
EKAH – One
The Lord is one alone. Here one means that the Lord alone exists. There is nothing similar to or dissimilar to the Lord. The scriptures speak about the Lord as EKAM EVA ADVITEEYAM or one without a second. There are three types of differences between things. First is svagatha bhedha or internal differences like the body has internal parts of hands, legs etc. As explained earlier, since the Lord is without parts, he doesn’t have any internal differences. Second is sajaatheeya bhedha or difference between similar things like one tree is different from another tree. The Lord is one alone – there cannot be two Lords as there cannot be two Consciousness. Since the Lord is the primal cause or substratum of the illusory world – there cannot be any other Lord as that would make two causes for the world. Thus there is nothing similar to the Lord. Third is vijaatheeya bhedha or difference between dissimilar things like a tree is different from a stone. The Lord is the primal cause of the world – the Lord is in whom the world resides and unto whom the world will merge after destruction. Since the Lord is the primal and one cause, therefore there is nothing different from the Lord. The scriptures also speak about the Lord alone existing before creation and after creation. Thus the Lord doesn’t have any of the three bhedhas of svagatha, sajaatheeya and vijaatheeya. Hence the Lord is ONE alone.
The above characteristics need to be learned thoroughly without any doubts so that we will be able to contemplate on the Lord remembering these characteristics. Thus we will not learn all the characteristics in a single day – we will see the next characteristics in the next day.
Atma nityo avyayah shuddha ekah kshetrajna aasrayah
Avikriyah svadrik heturvyaapako asangyanaavritah
Atman or Consciousness is eternal, immutable, pure, one alone, the resider of the temple of body, substratum (support for everything), changeless, self-seer or self-conscious, cause of the world, all-pervasive, unattached and without any veil or obstacle.
Explanation
We discussed the first four characteristics of the Lord as described by Prahlaada to his co-students. The four characteristics we discussed are that the Self is eternal, immutable, pure and one alone.
Let us see the other characteristics of the Atman.
Kshetrajna – indweller of the temple of body
The first four characteristics of the Lord were with respect to the nature alone & not taking into consideration the illusory world. Explanation of the Lord is not complete until the explanation takes into account the illusory world which is being experienced by the ignorant seeker. The seeker will not be able to relate the Lord’s pure nature as such without any analogy or without it being relative to the world. It is but the very nature of the mind to relate things to what is currently experiences. It is due to this reason that when a person hears the word “GOD”, he assumes a form for the Lord even though the Lord is all-pervasive and hence formless. Thus Prahlaada is here entering into the characteristic of the Lord with respect to the world.
Lord propounds in Gita 13th Chapter that the body or the things that can be objectified is termed as KSHETRAM. Kshetra or temple is that which is destroyed finally or which is not real. The person who knows the temple or is indweller of the temple is KSHETRAJNA. A person who is the Subject of all objects alone knows the objects. Thus he alone is the indweller of the temple of the world. As the subject of all experiences, as the witness of all experiences, he is the Kshetrajna. As the substratum or essence of all the things in the world, he is the indweller of the world. The scriptures proclaim the Lord to be that real entity from which the world has been created, in whom the world exists & unto whom the world merges at the time of destruction. Thus the Lord is the substratum of all beings. The substratum is always the essence – and hence the Lord is the indweller of all things in the world as their essence. Thus the Subject of “I” or Consciousness in each one of us which experiences the world and other entities is the Lord alone. The Lord while explaining about Kshetrajna in Gita says that “I am the kshetrajna of all beings in the world”.
Aasraya – substratum
Kshetrajna is the essence of all things in the world. The things or entities in the world is ever changing and hence is only an illusion. Any illusion needs to have a real substratum like the water seen in desert has the substratum of desert. The substratum is the real entity in which the illusion seems to be present. Thus the Lord is the substratum or locus of all beings in the world. The Lord is the support for all beings in the world as they are mere illusions in the Lord. If we remove the Lord from the world, the world ceases to exist. The Lord is the power who is controlling the world, giving light to the world and making the world appear as if sentient.
Avikriyah – changeless
If the Lord is the substratum of all beings or the support of all beings, then the Lord also might be subject to changes when the beings change – thus the changing Lord will not be eternal – this doubt is being answered by the word AVIKRIYAH. The Lord even though is the support of all beings is changeless as he is the substratum of all beings. Any support if it has real contact with that which it supports will be subject to changes. For eg: the table which is supported on the floor is an example for this – here when the table changes, the floor as well changes. But in the case of the relation between Lord and the world, the world is not real like the Lord. The world is only an illusion. Thus this is like water seen in desert. Even though water might seem to be changing but still the desert doesn’t change at all as it is the substratum of illusory water. Similarly the world is only an illusion in the Lord & hence changes in the world will never change the Lord. The Lord is the one and only changeless entity amidst the changing world. The Lord as the mere substratum of all beings is only a witness to the illusory changes of the illusory world.
Svadrik – self conscious
There can be a doubt that doesn’t Lord require any light to shine? Doesn’t the Lord require any seer for his illumination? Prahlaada answers this by telling that the Lord is self-luminous, self-conscious and the self-seer. The Lord is that light which gives light to all other things. Thus the Lord never requires any other light for his illumination. There requires no proof or illumination for Consciousness. To know that “I exist”, there need be no light, no scriptures, no proof at all. This “I” or Consciousness is Self-luminous and it is one with the Lord.
Mundaka Upanishad speaks thus about the illumining nature of the Lord
Na tatra sooryo bhaathi na Chandra thaarakam
Na ima vidhyutho bhaanthi kuthoyam agnih
Tameva bhaanthan anubhaathi sarvam
Tasya bhaasa sarvam idam vibhaathi
There (the place of the Lord) neither the Sun shines nor the moon; lightning doesn’t shine nor does fire. Everything follows his light only – it is due to his light that everything shines.
We will see the rest four characteristics of the Lord in the next day.
Avikriyah svadrik heturvyaapako asangyanaavritah
Atman or Consciousness is eternal, immutable, pure, one alone, the resider of the temple of body, substratum (support for everything), changeless, self-seer or self-conscious, cause of the world, all-pervasive, unattached and without any veil or obstacle.
Explanation
We will discuss today the nature of Atman through the dvadasha lakshanas (12 characteristics) that Prahlaada explains to his co-students.
What is Atman?
Atman is the Self or the ultimate reality of Lord. The Vedas speak about the ultimate reality as Brahman, Paramatman, Ishwara, Lord, Atman, Self etc. All these different terms denote the same entity – the ultimate reality which is of the nature of Sat (existence), Chit (Consciousness) and Ananda (bliss).
The scriptures also speak about the ultimate reality of Lord as the one and only entity existing. All other things which seem to be present are only mere illusions in the reality of Lord even as the dream world & its objects are only illusions in the dreamer. Thus what really exists is only the ultimate reality of Lord. Differences are only names and forms of the Lord. As various gold ornaments (having different names and forms) are only an illusion in gold – they all are ultimately gold alone – similarly the dual world that we seem to perceive is only an illusion of names and forms in the Lord. Remembering this reality, let us know see the lakshanas given by Prahlaada.
Nityah - Eternal
Atman is Nitya or eternal. As explained, the Lord of the nature of Consciousness is ever present. Time which is divided into past, present and future itself is dependent on Consciousness. If there is no Consciousness (the seeker is not conscious), then there is no time at all. Thus the Lord of the nature of Consciousness is eternal or ever existing. Nitya is with respect to time but this can be extended to space and causation as well. Desha (space), kaala (time) and vishaya (causation) are the three limiting adjuncts of anything in the world. The Lord as he is the substratum of these three is not limited by these. Thus the Lord is ever present (eternal), all-pervasive and the primal cause of everything (as the substratum of illusory world).
Avyayah – Immutable
As the Lord is eternal, he cannot undergo any changes. That which undergoes changes is subject to birth and death. The body that we see undergoes constant changes and hence it dies. Science accepts that cells are continuously changing as they take birth and die. Thus that which is changing cannot be eternal as it will cease to exist one fine day. The Lord as he is eternal cannot undergo any changes. Since the Lord cannot have any changes, he is immutable. We have to remember constantly that the Lord mentioned by the scriptures is not some Vishnu or Siva distinct from the seeker – the Lord is the very nature of the seeker – there is no difference between the seeker & the Lord as whatever exists is the Lord alone – it is only due to ignorance of one’s own very nature of Lord that a seeker finds himself as different from the Lord.
Shuddha or pure
Sankara in his Brahma Sutra Bhashya defines the Self as Nitya Shuddha Buddha Mukhta or ever pure, enlightened and liberated. Any entity which has parts alone can have contacts with other things. The body comes in contact with objects because the body has the parts of hands, legs etc. That which is devoid of parts cannot have any contact with anything. It is only due to contact with an external entity that impurity is caused – rather impurity is mixing of an external entity. Aakasha or space is partless and hence it doesn’t have any contact with anything. The Lord from whom space has come cannot be with parts. If the Lord is with parts, the space created from the Lord also should have parts. Thus the Lord is partless – this is what Sruthi calls as Nishkala (without parts). Since the Lord is without parts, therefore the Lord cannot have contact with anything else. Since the Lord cannot have contact with anything, therefore there cannot be any impurity in the Lord. Thus the Lord is ever pure.
EKAH – One
The Lord is one alone. Here one means that the Lord alone exists. There is nothing similar to or dissimilar to the Lord. The scriptures speak about the Lord as EKAM EVA ADVITEEYAM or one without a second. There are three types of differences between things. First is svagatha bhedha or internal differences like the body has internal parts of hands, legs etc. As explained earlier, since the Lord is without parts, he doesn’t have any internal differences. Second is sajaatheeya bhedha or difference between similar things like one tree is different from another tree. The Lord is one alone – there cannot be two Lords as there cannot be two Consciousness. Since the Lord is the primal cause or substratum of the illusory world – there cannot be any other Lord as that would make two causes for the world. Thus there is nothing similar to the Lord. Third is vijaatheeya bhedha or difference between dissimilar things like a tree is different from a stone. The Lord is the primal cause of the world – the Lord is in whom the world resides and unto whom the world will merge after destruction. Since the Lord is the primal and one cause, therefore there is nothing different from the Lord. The scriptures also speak about the Lord alone existing before creation and after creation. Thus the Lord doesn’t have any of the three bhedhas of svagatha, sajaatheeya and vijaatheeya. Hence the Lord is ONE alone.
The above characteristics need to be learned thoroughly without any doubts so that we will be able to contemplate on the Lord remembering these characteristics. Thus we will not learn all the characteristics in a single day – we will see the next characteristics in the next day.
Atma nityo avyayah shuddha ekah kshetrajna aasrayah
Avikriyah svadrik heturvyaapako asangyanaavritah
Atman or Consciousness is eternal, immutable, pure, one alone, the resider of the temple of body, substratum (support for everything), changeless, self-seer or self-conscious, cause of the world, all-pervasive, unattached and without any veil or obstacle.
Explanation
We discussed the first four characteristics of the Lord as described by Prahlaada to his co-students. The four characteristics we discussed are that the Self is eternal, immutable, pure and one alone.
Let us see the other characteristics of the Atman.
Kshetrajna – indweller of the temple of body
The first four characteristics of the Lord were with respect to the nature alone & not taking into consideration the illusory world. Explanation of the Lord is not complete until the explanation takes into account the illusory world which is being experienced by the ignorant seeker. The seeker will not be able to relate the Lord’s pure nature as such without any analogy or without it being relative to the world. It is but the very nature of the mind to relate things to what is currently experiences. It is due to this reason that when a person hears the word “GOD”, he assumes a form for the Lord even though the Lord is all-pervasive and hence formless. Thus Prahlaada is here entering into the characteristic of the Lord with respect to the world.
Lord propounds in Gita 13th Chapter that the body or the things that can be objectified is termed as KSHETRAM. Kshetra or temple is that which is destroyed finally or which is not real. The person who knows the temple or is indweller of the temple is KSHETRAJNA. A person who is the Subject of all objects alone knows the objects. Thus he alone is the indweller of the temple of the world. As the subject of all experiences, as the witness of all experiences, he is the Kshetrajna. As the substratum or essence of all the things in the world, he is the indweller of the world. The scriptures proclaim the Lord to be that real entity from which the world has been created, in whom the world exists & unto whom the world merges at the time of destruction. Thus the Lord is the substratum of all beings. The substratum is always the essence – and hence the Lord is the indweller of all things in the world as their essence. Thus the Subject of “I” or Consciousness in each one of us which experiences the world and other entities is the Lord alone. The Lord while explaining about Kshetrajna in Gita says that “I am the kshetrajna of all beings in the world”.
Aasraya – substratum
Kshetrajna is the essence of all things in the world. The things or entities in the world is ever changing and hence is only an illusion. Any illusion needs to have a real substratum like the water seen in desert has the substratum of desert. The substratum is the real entity in which the illusion seems to be present. Thus the Lord is the substratum or locus of all beings in the world. The Lord is the support for all beings in the world as they are mere illusions in the Lord. If we remove the Lord from the world, the world ceases to exist. The Lord is the power who is controlling the world, giving light to the world and making the world appear as if sentient.
Avikriyah – changeless
If the Lord is the substratum of all beings or the support of all beings, then the Lord also might be subject to changes when the beings change – thus the changing Lord will not be eternal – this doubt is being answered by the word AVIKRIYAH. The Lord even though is the support of all beings is changeless as he is the substratum of all beings. Any support if it has real contact with that which it supports will be subject to changes. For eg: the table which is supported on the floor is an example for this – here when the table changes, the floor as well changes. But in the case of the relation between Lord and the world, the world is not real like the Lord. The world is only an illusion. Thus this is like water seen in desert. Even though water might seem to be changing but still the desert doesn’t change at all as it is the substratum of illusory water. Similarly the world is only an illusion in the Lord & hence changes in the world will never change the Lord. The Lord is the one and only changeless entity amidst the changing world. The Lord as the mere substratum of all beings is only a witness to the illusory changes of the illusory world.
Svadrik – self conscious
There can be a doubt that doesn’t Lord require any light to shine? Doesn’t the Lord require any seer for his illumination? Prahlaada answers this by telling that the Lord is self-luminous, self-conscious and the self-seer. The Lord is that light which gives light to all other things. Thus the Lord never requires any other light for his illumination. There requires no proof or illumination for Consciousness. To know that “I exist”, there need be no light, no scriptures, no proof at all. This “I” or Consciousness is Self-luminous and it is one with the Lord.
Mundaka Upanishad speaks thus about the illumining nature of the Lord
Na tatra sooryo bhaathi na Chandra thaarakam
Na ima vidhyutho bhaanthi kuthoyam agnih
Tameva bhaanthan anubhaathi sarvam
Tasya bhaasa sarvam idam vibhaathi
There (the place of the Lord) neither the Sun shines nor the moon; lightning doesn’t shine nor does fire. Everything follows his light only – it is due to his light that everything shines.
We will see the rest four characteristics of the Lord in the next day.
# posted by vedanta : 10:32 AM
