Wednesday, 8 July 2020

Advaita Makaranda -2

Verses 6 to 12


Verse 6
abha-roopasya visvasya bhanam bha-sannidheh vinaa I
kadaachit na avakalpeta bha cha aham tena sarvagah II
Without proximity of Consciousness, awareness of the insentient world is simply not possible. I am that Consciousness; and I am present everywhere.

The world being made up of inert elements is not sentient and it can be experienced only in the proximity of sentient Consciousness. From this it follows that ‘I’ as Consciousness is present everywhere i.e. all pervading.  Wherever the jivas exist in the world they are aware of the inert world around them in the light of the Consciousness only.  Just like electricity present in the wires needs an equipment   like bulb to reveal itself, Consciousness reveals itself through an upadhi, which It illuminates as well. Our attention is focussed on the upadhi and not on the illuminating Consciousness like concentrating on the bulb forgetting the electricity.   And that all-pervading Consciousness is ‘I’, the Self.

Verse 7

na hi bhanadrte sattvam narte bhanam chitah achitah I
chit-sambhandhah api na adhyaasaadrte tena aham advayah II

There is no World without experience; no experience of the inert world without sentiency; No association of these two, sentiency and inertness, is possible but for superimposition and therefore I am Non-dual!

For a thing to exist it has to be knowable to someone at some time.  For example, it is said that rabbit has no horns as nobody has experienced it ever.  The knowledge of an inert object is never possible without association with Consciousness.  Sentient Consciousness and the inert material world cannot have ever a regular relationship as they are of different degree of reality.  Consciousness is of a higher order of Reality i.e. Paramarthika Sathyam while material world is of a lower order of Reality i.e. Vyavaharika Sathyam. It is like trying to have a wedding with a girl whom one met and moved with in the dream.  Since Consciousness appears to have relationship this must be superimposition. That is Conciousness is the substratum and the world is the superimposition, adhyasa, on the Consciousness like the snake imagined on the rope.  The substratum and super imposition cannot have a cause-effect or substance-quality or whole-part relationship. Therefore Consciousness, the Self, is one without a second, non-dual.

Verse 8
na deho na indriyam cha aham na praanah na manah na dheeh
mamataa pari-rabdhatvat aakreedatvat idam dhiyah
I am not the body, nor the sense-organs, nor Prana, nor the mind, nor the intellect; for these are all objects of the ‘my’-thought, or of the ‘this’-thought.

The gross body, the five jnanendriyas, the five karmendriyas, the mind and the intellect; all these share one common characteristic feature i.e. they are all objects of the thought of possession-‘my thought’.   For example, we say ‘my nose’, my doubt’ etc.   And whatever I claim as mine, I am not, as I am not my dog. Also I am different from whatever I experience.  I, the experiencer Subject am different from whatever I experience which is an object and is an object of ‘this’ thought like ‘this book’.  The subject ‘I’, the Consciousness is always different from the object and can never become the object of ‘my’ thought or ‘this’ thought.

Verse 9
saakshee sarva-anvitah preyan aham na aham kadaachana I
parinaama paricchheda paritapaih upaplavaat II
I am the witness, all-pervading and dear, and not the Ego, and never can be, for with i) modifications, ii) limitations, and iii) afflictions, it has calamitous associations.

Ego is the ‘I’ thought which is part of anthakarana that is enlivened by the reflection of Consciousness, Chidabasa, in anthakarana.  The enlivened ego is misconstrued as one’s real Self and this lands one in samsara as ego suffers from  i) modifications, ii) limitations and iii) afflictions that are stated below.
Ego is changeable as it is identified with thought modifications of likes and dislikes, joys and sorrows and becomes good, bad, happy or unhappy accordingly.
Ego suffers the limitations of the body, as it is identified with body and gets conditioned by time, space and objects
Ego suffers the three types of afflictions; Adhyathmika, Adhidaivika and Adhibauthika i.e. from within, from natural forces, from physical circumstances.
But the Self-shining Consciousness undergoes no changes being only a passive witness; is infinite and all-pervading without limitations of time, space and objects; and is unaffected by afflictions being Bliss absolute. Hence the Ego can never be considered as the true Self, Conscousness.
Verse 10
supte ahami na drishyante duhkha-dosha pravrittayah I
atah tasya eva samsaarah na me samsartru saakshinah II
When the Ego goes to sleep, one does not ‘see’ the world of sorrow and defects. For this reason, surely Samsara must belong to the Ego alone, and not to Me who am the witness of Ego’s play.

In deep sleep there is neither the experience of ego nor of samsara.  When one wakes up both are experienced.  However Self, the consciousness exists in deep sleep as one knows on waking up that he has slept well.  Self, the Consciousness illumines not only the presence of ego and samsara in the waking and dream states but also their absence in the deep-sleep state. So the sorrows and limitations which characterise samsara belong to the ego and not to the witnessing Self. This can be inferred from the example of a clear crystal that is colourless.  When a red flower is placed near the crystal, it appears red.  If the flower is changed to a blue flower then the crystal appears blue.  Similarly the qualities of ego are wrongly ascribed to Self, the Consciousness, which is only a witness.

Verse 11
suptah suptim na jaanati na asupte svapna-jagarau I
jagrat-svapna-sushuptinam sakshi atah aham atad dashah II

The Ego that sleeps does not know sleep. In Self that sleeps not, there is no dream or waking. Of the dream, waking and sleep states, I am the Witness, thus, free from these states.

The ego goes to sleep in deep sleep.  Therefore it does not have the experience of deep sleep.  Self, the Consciousness, is awake, so to speak in this state.  It is not only aware of the sleep-state but also of the sleeper-ego, in sleep state, illumining it as a witness.  If the non-sleeper witness does not have sleep, it does not have waking also as waking is possible for the sleeper only.  Whoever doesn’t have sleep state, cannot have waking, dream state also.  Witness is not associated with sleep state. Therefore, witness doesn’t have jagrat, swapna also.  So ‘I’, the Consciousness, who is the witness only in all the three states is free from the three avasthas; jagrat, swapna  and sushupthi.

Verse 12
vijnaana viratih suptih tat janma svapna-jaagarau I
tat saakshinah katham me syuh nitya jnaanasya te trayah II
Cessation of all particular knowledge is deep sleep; its rise constitutes dream and waking states. To Me, their Witness, how can it belong? I am ever of the nature of knowledge (as the Knower of these three states).

When there is a ‘knower’, and something known as ‘this’, it is called ‘particular knowledge’.  In deep sleep there is cessation of such particular knowledge.  In waking and dream state it happens again.   That which illumines the cessation and rise of this particular knowledge has to be different from these states.  Thus ‘I’, the Consciousness, who is the witness is different from the waking, dream and deep sleep states.   ‘I’, the Consciousness, is ever of the nature of knowledge that illumines the rise and cessation of particular knowledge. There is no rise or fall, growth or death for Me. 
----------------------

No comments:

Post a Comment