Mundaka Upanishad – 6

Sakshi and Ahamkara 

Third Mundaka opens with a Mantra that contains a beautiful simile which is a classic example of Vedic seers employing a poetic picture to portray a philosophic truth. 

Dvau suparna, sayuja  sakhaaya, samanam vriksham parishasvajate I

Tayor-anyah pippalam svadu atti anashnan anyah abhichaakasheeti.II

There are two birds, bound to each other in close friendship perched on the very same tree.  One of them eats the fruits (of the tree) with great relish; the other looks on without eating (as a spectator). (5 – 1)

The Mantra speaks of two similar looking birds seated in the tree, of which one is tasting the fruits of the tree with relish while the other just watches without tasting any fruit.  Here the tree stands for the body, fruits for  Karma phala, the two birds for the Sakshi and Ahamkara. 

Mind is insentient by itself having evolved out of the satva guna of  the collective pancha bhuthas. Consciousness lends sentiency to mind through its reflection in the mind, chithabasa. The sentient mind in turn lends sentiency to the sense organs and body and makes them sentient.  Mind stands here for Anthakarana which is made up of thoughts.  These thoughts called vrittis are classified as four faculties, based on their function.  They are mind, intellect, chitham and ahamkara.  Mind is the emotional, doubting faculty, intellect the rational discriminating faculty, chitham, the memory faculty and ahamkara  self reference faculty or ego.  How it functions can be illustrated by one example.  Suppose you have parked the car in the parking-lot and gone for shopping in a multi storied super market.  Suddenly you get a doubt whether car has been locked properly.  This doubting vritti arises in the mind.  Then you have a thought ‘yes, I have locked it correctly’.  This vritti arises in the intellect.  If this prevails you go on shopping.  If the doubt prevails then you go back to the parking lot. When you go back to the parking lot another vritti arises giving you the bay and the location where the car is parked.  This is from the chiththam.  In all the three stages ‘I’ vritti is constantly there, as kartha and bhoktha.  This ‘I’ vritti is ahamkara. 

To distinguish the consciousness and its reflection in Anthakarana, we call the Consciousness as sakshi chaithanyam, sakshi in short, as it is neither the kartha nor the bhoktha and the reflection in Anthakarana as ahamkara chaithanyam, ahamkara in short. This ahamkara is the one which is called jivatma ordinarily, though the term is used to refer to sakshi in lakshyartha.  Now we will come to the Mantra.  The two birds are sakshi and ahamkara and it is the ahamkara that experiences the karma phala, some pleasant and some unpleasant and reacts accordingly while Sakshi just looks on, as it is a mere witness to the events.

This simile is carried on in the next Mantra where it is stated that ahamkara sunk in ignorance and deluded, grieves its ignorance.  But it sees the sakshi and moves near it, and as it moves nearer slowly its dejection wears off.  When ahamkara moves still closer and discovers its identity, it disappears to become one with the sakshi for this is only a shadow.  This is the stage when ahamkara identifies itself with the sakshi, that is the ego ‘I’ with true ‘I’ which is Consciousness.  Then the attitude changes from ‘I am ahamkara backed up by sakshi’ to ‘I am sakshi acting through ahamkara’.  The former attitude is samsara and the latter attitude is liberation or Moksha.  This change of attitude from participation to witness is spoken of as achieving supreme equanimity, the state of Jnani, in Mantra 3.

In Mantra 5, four sadhanas for attaining Self-knowledge, Athma Jnanam, is set out.

Satyena tapasa labhyah hi eshah athma,samyak jnanena brahma-charyena nityam I

Antah sarere jyotirmayah hi subhrah,yam pashyanti yatayah ksheena doshah.II

This Athma, resplendent and pure, whom the sinless seekers behold residing within the body, is attained by unceasing practice of truthfulness, austerity, right knowledge, and continence.     (5 – 5)

Self-knowledge is shifting the field of knowledge, from lower Self, ahamkara, to the higher Self, sakshi.  It involves disowning ahamkara as true Self and owning up sakshi as one’s true Self.  Four sadhanas are given in the first line of the Mantra for attaining Self-knowledge. 

1. Satyam - To realize your true self, which is absolute truth, one should adopt truth as one’s way of life.  There should be avoidance of verbal untruth at all times in one’s life and wherever speaking truth will hurt someone, to adopt silence

2. Tapas - Concentration of mind and sense organs and focusing all efforts in the direction of achieving the goal of self knowledge.

3.  Samyak Jnanam - Enquiry with the help of sastras and guru’s guidance to achieve a clear firm knowledge of the True Self

        4.  Brahmacharyam - Sexual purity and chastity.  

One need not take to sanyasa and lead a life of celibacy.  In Sanathana Dharma, married life is called grihasthashram.  So even as a householder when one leads an ashram way of life, with moderation in all pleasure pursuits within the ambit of marriage not swerving from dharma, and ridding his mind of raga and dwesha, he too qualifies.  Sri Krishna echoes this idea when he says in the first line of Gita (5-3); “Jneyah sa nitya sanyasi yo na dweshti na kaangkshati (He who neither hates nor desires should be known as a constant Sanyasi)”.  The word Nithyam has to be added to the above four sadhanas, with the result the sadhanas now read as: Nithyam satyam,   Nithyam  tapas,   Nithyam  samyak jnanam,  Nithyam brahmacharyam.  In keeping with this the word Yatayaha in line 4 should be interpreted as seekers and not as ascetics.  Such seekers with the mind freed of impurities like raga and dwesha discover the True Self as the pure, resplendent Consciousness in the inner cavity of their heart.

The sadhana of Sathyam is glorified in the next Mantra 6 with the famous words “Satyam eva jayate (Truth alone triumphs)---“.   Brahma Lakshanam is given in Mantra 7.

Brihat cha tad divyam achintya roopam, sookshmaat cha tat sookshmataram vibhaati I

Dooraat sudoore tad iha antike cha, pashyatsu iha eva nihitam guhaayaam.II

That Brahman shines forth, vast, self-luminous, inconceivable, and subtler than the subtlest. He is farther than the farthest, yet He is right here very near at hand. Indeed, He is seen here, dwelling in the “Cave of the Heart” by enlightened beings.    (5-7)

Brihat means big.  When it is used as an adjective, the noun it qualifies also determines how big the bigness is.  For bigness of a big ant and bigness of a big elephant are not the same.  When this word is used as a noun it can mean just big, that is bigger than the biggest you can imagine.  This idea is also given in Purusha suktham where it is said Purusha pervades the whole universe and extends beyond it.  But the same Brahman is subtler than the subtlest.  The subtlest bhutha is space.  Brahman is subtler than space.  Bigger than the biggest yet subtler than the subtlest.  That makes it “achintya roopam”, beyond conception.  When it says it is farther than the farthest it means it is far removed from all things known to those, who in their ignorance conceive of it with a location like heaven, kailasa or vaikunta.  But it is here within one’s own self, in the sacred space within one’s heart, for the realized people.  What type of people are these realized people and through what process they realize it is explained In Mantra 8.

Na chakshushaa grihyate, na api vaachaa, na anyaih devaih, tapasaa karmana vaaI

Jnaana prasaadena, vishuddha sattvah, tatah tu,tam pashyate nishkalam dhyayamaanah.II

Brahman is not perceivable by the eyes, nor describable through words, nor grasped by the other senses, nor (obtained) by penance or good works. A seeker becomes pure through serenity of intellect; thereupon, in meditation, he realizes Him who is without parts.    (5-8)

They are the people who have a pure mind free of raga and dwesha and an intellect that is sensitive and refined.  They realize Brahman as without parts in Vedantic meditation.  Vedantic meditation is also called nitidyasanam wherein one meditates on Mahavakhyas like ‘Prajnanam Brahma’.  Such a realized person is called a Jnani.  As Jnani’s mind is pure and intellect subtle, he serves almost as unblocked pipe line for Iswara’s grace, to all those who serve him devotedly.  If they have dharmic material desires that will be fulfilled with Jnani’s blessings.  More on Jnani, we shall see in the next blog

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Mundaka Upanishad – 5

 Sadhana and Jnana phalam

The second Khanda of second Mundaka opens with the description of Brahman in Mantra 1, which Swami Gurubhakthananda calls as “Lord’s Business Card”.

Aavih san-nihitam guhaacharam  naama mahat  padam atra etat samarpitam I

Ejat praanat nimishat cha yad etat jaanatha sad-asad varenyam, param vijaanaad yad varishtham prajaanaam II

The Luminous Brahman dwells in the cave of the heart and is known to move there. It is the great support of all; for in It is centred everything that moves, breathes, and blinks. O disciples, know that to be your Self-that which is both gross and subtle, which is adorable, supreme, and beyond the understanding of creatures. (2-2-1)

Detais of Brahman Given in this verse are as follows:

Aavih – He is bright and effulgent

Sannihitam – He is very close to us

Guhaacharam – He is in the cave of our heart

Naama Mahat – He is called  ‘The Great’

He is the support of everything in and around Him

He is both gross and subtle

He is the Supreme and beyond the understanding of the intellect

Mantras 2 & 3 lay the foundation for the archery analogy presented in Mantra 4 as follows:

Pranavo dhanuh sharah hi athma, brahma tat lakshyam uchyate I

Apramattena veddhavyam, sharavat tat-mayah bhavet. II 

Pranava is the bow; the Athma is the arrow; Brahman is said to be the mark. It is to be struck by an undistracted mind. Then the Athma becomes one with Brahman, as the arrow with the target. (2–2-4)

The word meaning of the Mantra is that using Omkara as the bow, Jivathma as arrow, the target of Brahman should be hit with a totally focused mind, so that the arrow hits the mark and becomes strongly embedded it or become one with it.

Omkara stands for Omkara Vichara which in turn represents all the Upanishadic Vicharas like Pancha Kosa Vichara, Avastha Thraya Vichara etc.  Through these Upanishadic Vicharas, Jiva Brahma Ikya Jnaanam is to be realized.     Jiva Brahma Ikya Jnanam is picturesquely described as the arrow hitting the mark and becoming one with it.  Here the distance to be travelled is notional only as Jeeva Brahma Ikyam is an accomplished fact.  Due to ignorant identification of Self with anathma instead of Athma, there appears to be a distance which has to be mentally crossed through knowledge and not physically.  For example in Mahabaratha Karna thinks he is Radheya, son of the charioteer, and so not a Kshathriya.  When Kunti reveals to him that he is her son, that he is Kuntiputra and not Radheya, what else should he do to become a Kshathriya.  The Jnanam itself makes him know himself as Kshathriya.  Same way the realization that self shining consciousness that is one’s real Self is same as Brahman, makes one attain the knowledge of Jiva Brahma Ikyam.  This Mantra is also important for a few of the sadhanas, drawn from the requirements for successful shooting of the arrow.

1)   Upanishadic Vichara under the guidance of a proper Guru, indicated by proper bow.

2) One should have a focused mind, Chiththa Ekagratha, achieved through upasana, indicated by the sharpness of the arrow.

3) One should have a purified mind, Chiththa Suddhi, through Karma Yoga as indicated by the straightness of the arrow.

4) One should develop an attitude of withdrawal from all other unconnected affairs, vairagyam, indicated by the bowstring that is required to be drawn backwards.

        5) Intense yearning for this knowledge and through that to Moksha, indicated by one’s sights being fixed on the target alone.

Another important sadhana is stated in the next Mantra, Mantra No.5.  It is avoiding useless talk and empty gossip (anyaa vaacho vimunchatha).  This can be achieved by trying to be in satsang always and where it is not possible, limiting the talk to minimum, preferring silence for gossip.

Mantra No.8 gives three fold Jnana phalam as follows:

Bhidyate hridaya granthih, chhidyante sarva samshayaa I

Ksheeyante cha asya karmaani, tasmin drishte para-avare. II    

The knots of his heart become untied; all doubts are dispelled; and all his Karmas are consumed; when He is seen as both Cause and effect.  (2-2-8)

First benefit is the Samsaranasa achieved by the destruction of the knot in the heart.  The thought that I am this body with athma is the knot in the heart.  When it is cut or destroyed, yielding place to the thought that I am the athma with the body arises in the heart, the hold of samsara is broken and one feels liberated of inner agitations caused by kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada, matsarya.

The second benefit is Ajnananasa achieved through the removal of all doubts in the jnanam attained.  The doubts can arise due to various reasons, main among them being the experience of the universe contradicting the knowledge gained through study of sastras, and the conflicting arguments from differing faiths etc.  These when resolved through the process of Mananam, that is through discussion with peers in satsang, repeated study and analysis and by going back to the guru with doubts and getting them cleared, the knowledge attained becomes firm and doubt free.  When the ajnana is totally destroyed without any traces of doubt, then one has the vision of Brahman in all, high and low. 

Third benefit is Karmanasa.  The Karmanasa is not total. Only Agami karma phala, the fruit of the karmas done upto that date, is annulled and Sanchitha karma phala, the stored up karma phala from the previous births, is dissolved.  But the Prarabhdha karma phala, that was the cause of present birth, stays till its exhaustion at death.  Because of this phenomenon the Jivan Muktha even though he has attained Jnanam seems to suffer from physical ailments.  It is the Prarabhdha karma that determines one’s Janma, birth as what and in what environs, Aayuhu, length of lifespan and Bhoga, physical experiences and ailments.  The Jivan Mukthas may appear to suffer physically but mentally they distance themselves from the body and its suffering, as we have seen in case of Sri Ramakrishna Pamahamsa and Sri Ramana Maharishi.  They have shown stoic indifference to the ailment treating it as of the body and not of them.  

The self shining nature of Consciousness that is Brahman is illustrated in Mantra 10. 

Na tatra sooryo bhaati  na chandra taarakam  na imaah vidyuto bhaanti  kutah ayam agnih I

Tam eva bhaantam anubhaati sarvam  tasya bhaasaa  sarvam idam vibhaati. II

The sun does not shine there, nor the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings, not to speak of this fire. When He shines, everything shines after Him; by His light everything is lighted. (2-2-10)

For all the known sources of light like sun, moon, stars and lightning and fire, consciousness alone is the ultimate source of light as is stated explicitly by Sri Krishna as well in Gita (15-12).

Yadaadityagatam tejo jagad bhaasayate’khilam  I

Yacchandramasi yacchaagnau tattejo viddhi maamakam. II  (Gita 15-12)

That light which residing in the sun, illumines the whole world, that which is in the moon and in the fire—know that light to be Mine.

That is why consciousness is called Jyothishaam Jyothihi, the light of lights.  This Mantra 10 is chanted at the time of Arathi, when camphor light is shown before the deity.  There it signifies that camphor light is shown not to illuminate Him, the illuminator of all, but to show symbolically the surrender of our ego at His feet.

This Mundaka ends with Mantra 11 which sums up that Brahman is everywhere and He is everything that we see.

Brahma eva idam amritam  purastaad brahma  paschaad brahma  dakshinatah cha uttaren I

Adhah cha  urdhvam cha  prasritam  brahma eva idam vishvam  idam varishtham II.

That immortal Brahman alone is before, that Brahman is behind and that Brahman is to the right and left. Brahman alone pervades everything above and below; this universe is that Supreme Brahman alone.  (He alone) is the Supreme worthy of reverence! (2-2-11)

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Mundaka Upanishad – 4

The glory of Brahman 

The second Mundaka opens with the Mantra that defines Brahman as the material cause of the universe in an indirect way.  This indirect definition is called Tadastha lakshanam.  The indirect definition is given in the Mantra through the example of bonfire.  Bonfire is Agni Tatvam associated with fuel in the form of a log of wood.  This throws out sparks.  The sparks are the agni tatvam only associated with the tiny chip of fuel.  So the sparks and bonfire have as the core principle the Agni Tatvam.  From the blazing bonfire manifold sparks come out and go back to it again.  In the same way manifold beings of creation come out of Ishwara, at the time of creation and go back to it at the time of pralaya.  Just as sparks and bonfire have an identical core principle, Agni  Tatvam, the individual being Jiva and cosmic being, Ishwara, have an identical eternal principle.  This eternal tatvam is called Brahman in Ishwara and Athma in Jiva, and this is the consciousness principle or chaithanyam.  This identity is termed Jeeva Brahma Ikyam. 

2^nd Mantra gives a direct definition of Brahman as intelligent cause for the universe.  As it is a direct definition, it is called the Swarupa Lakshanam, as in Mantra 1-1-6 of this Upanishad.

Divyah hi amoortah purushah sa-baahya abhyantarah hi ajah I

Apranah hi amanah shubhrah hi aksharat paratah parah II

He is the self-luminous and formless Purusha, uncreated and existing both within and without. He is devoid of prana, devoid of mind, pure, and higher than the supreme Imperishable. (2-1-2)

The second Mantra reveals that Brahman as pure existence is beyond all the three states of existence, gross, subtle and causal.  It is the ‘amness’ of ‘I am’ and ‘isness’ of ‘it is’.  It is a self shining principle, in that it needs no other source of light to reveal itself anytime anywhere.  In a room which is pitch dark, you need a torch or a source of light to know whether an object is there but what source of light you need to know that you are there? No source of light is needed as your ‘amness’ is self evident to you at all times, in all circumstances. So it is called swayamprakasa. Brahman as cause, pervades every object of the universe.  It is in and out of everything in the Universe, just like water is in and out of the waves of the ocean.  So instead of perceiving that Brahman is in everything in the universe, it is to be perceived that everything in the universe is in Brahman.  Brahman is called here ‘Purusha’, the all pervading infinite being.  As all pervading and infinite, it is beyond space and so cannot be located anywhere.   As our mind cannot conceive of anything without location, we for our convenience of worshipping give location as Vaikunta, Kailasa etc. for Ishwara, the Saguna Brahman.  It is ‘amoorta’ and so it has no sthula sareera, gross body.  It is ‘apranah’ and ‘amanah’ and so it has no sukshma sareera, subtle body, as well.  It is free of karana sareera, the causal body, as well as it is ‘aksharat paratah’, beyond the unmanifested causal state. As it has no sareeras, it is free of  all impurities and so is pure.   As origin of everything else including time and space, it itself has no origin.  The sum total of all these is the direct definition of Brahman, an attempt to describe in words, what is beyond the scope of description.

From Mantras 3 to 9, we get the process of creation, in which the statement, everything is born out of Brahman, is elaborated by pointing out that mountains, rivers, all forms of food, living beings besides heaven, devas and the Vedas, have all come out of Brahman.  Of these Mantra 4 merits special attention especially in the context of Modern Science.  We have in this Mantra description of whole Universe as a person, Virat Purusha, which reveals the interconnectedness of everything in the Universe, like the different organs of the human body that are interrelated to each other.  This view of interconnectedness is shared by Modern scientists.  American Nobel Physicist John Wheeler speaks of entire material Universe as a quantum foam in which every particle is linked to every other particle in quantum interconnectedness.

Some of the unique concepts of Advaita Vedanta, can be derived from the Mantra 10.

Purusha evedam vishvam karma

tapo brahma para amritam I

Etad yo veda nihitam guhaayaam

sah avidyaa granthim vikirati iha somya II    

The Purusha alone is this entire Universe, which consists of the sacrificial works and austerities. He who knows this highest and immortal Brahman as seated in the cavity of the heart, cuts asunder even here the knot of ignorance, O my good friend.  (2-1-10)

The Mantra 10 states that this universe of names, forms, emotions and experiences, that all things, subtle and gross, that go to make this universe, are only the manifestation of the infinite Being, Purusha.  He is the Supreme Brahman and one who knows Him as manifested in the cave of one’s heart cuts asunder the knots of ignorance that bind him to samsara, meaning he is liberated or gains Jivan Mukthi.  The Universe is constantly changing, but Brahman is changeless.  He undergoes no change or modification, while being the material and intelligent cause of this changing Universe.  This is possible because Brahman and Universe are of the order of two different types of realities. As per Advaita Vedanta there are three types of realities.

1.   Prathibhasika Satyam  -  reflective reality  -  it is real only to the person who is experiencing it, at the time of the experience only, like a dream.

2.   Vyavaharika Satyam  -  transactional reality  -  It is available for all experiences, but when you analyze it, it is not at all there as it appears to be like the sky, horizon, moonlight etc. This satyam is also called mithya.  Further the mitya objects keep on changing all the time. They are also not available for experience all the time.  Though we know it as not real, we will still talk and act as if it is real, for transactional convenience.

3.   Paramarthika Satyam  -  Absolute reality  -  Same and unchanging at all times.  Only Brahman is Paramarthika Satyam

The Universe comes under Vyavaharika Satyam, Mithya only.  Mithya is also known by another name, Maya.  Maya means it is not what it appears to be, like sun-rise and sun-set.

Dream is real, during the dream time to the dreamer.  But when dreamer wakes up, to him as the waker the dream time incidents, good or bad, has no impact except as a laughing matter when recalled.  Same way for the realized person, the experiences of the life, are treated as a lila as he has woken up to the higher reality of the Paramarthika Satyam.  So experiences of everyday life do not either excite him or hurt him and he participates in life experiences as a spectator. His attitude is of one watching a TV replay of the game that is already over and of which he knows the result.  Prathibhasika Satyam is real, Satyam, Vyavaharika Satyam is greater reality, Satyasya Satyam and Paramarthika Satyam is the greatest reality, Satyasya Satyasya Satyam, if we can use that word.  What happens in a lesser reality cannot affect the one in higher reality.  So Brahman though pervading the Universe as Karanam, is not affected by the Karyam, the Universe.  Realization of this Brahman, as one’s athma, the consciousness, is  called Jiva Brahma Ikyam,  the oneness of Jiva and Brahman. Here lakshyartham for Jiva is taken, which is Athma, the consciousness in individual.  This realization is termed Athma Jnanam or Brahma Jnanam.  Since this realization lifts your vision to the highest reality, universe and its experiences, even though you participate in it, do not affect you in any way.  This state of realized person is called Jivan Mukthi.  The concepts of three realities, mithya and Jivan Mukthi are unique to Advaita Vedanta.  From this follows the main message of Advaita Vedanta.  Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya, Jivo Brahmaiva na para (Brahman alone is real, this world is unreal; the Jiva is identical with Brahman)

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Mundaka Upanishad – 3

Khanda 2 

The second khanda/section opens with the praise of rituals in Karma Kanda of Veda or, in other words, the glory of Apara Vidya. The first Mantra says it is verily true that rituals mentioned in the Veda will confer on one prosperity and better life here and hereafter, as promised.  Then it goes on to show the inherent drawback, by taking one example, Agnihotra ritual, for analysis.  This ritual has to be done properly, scrupulously observing all conditions including the performance of satellite rituals when it is done Sakama i.e. for material benefits, here and hereafter.  The satellite rituals and other conditions governing the ritual are:

 1) Chathurmasyam to be performed once in four months,

2) Pournamasa  to be performed on full moon days,

3) Darsam to be performed on new moon days,

4) Agarayanam   to be performed at harvest time with freshly harvested grains. 

5) Further daily an athithi, a guest other than a family member, is to be fed. 

6) Also animals and birds have to be fed daily in a ritual called Vaisvadevam. 

7) And during performance of Agnihotra, there should be 18 members, ie 16 priests, 4 representing each Vedas, Yajaman, the Kartha and his wife. 

8) Further the Aahuti, the offering, has to be put correctly in between flames. 

If this ritual is done flawlessly, strictly observing all the above conditions to the letter of the word the Yajaman will go to the Swarga Loka, after his death, through the Sun’s rays duly escorted by the appropriate Devata and given a warm welcome there.  The drawback is if any ritual is missed or if the performance if flawed, then the Yajaman’s family will be doomed for seven generations.  Further even when he goes to Swarga Loka performing the rituals flawlessly observing all the conditions, his stay there is not permanent, as he has to return to Samsara in earth, once his stock of punya is exhausted.  This aspect is pointed out by Sri Krishna in Gita in 9-21 as; “Te tam bhuktwaa swargalokam vishaalam; Ksheene punye martyalokam vishanti; (They, having enjoyed the vast heaven, enter the world of mortals when their merits are exhausted;)”

So these rituals are dubbed as undependable boats in Mantra 7, as they cannot help one to cross samsara once and for all.  Even if one does upasana, living as a mendicant in the forest, controlling the mind totally, and subsisting only on bhiksha, one can only hope for going to Brahma Loka after death and obtaining Krama Mukthi at the time of Maha Pralaya after getting Brahma Jnaanam in Brahma Loka.  But if all these rituals and upasanas are done Nishkama, i.e. without any material desires for personal or family welfare,  they can give one Chiththa Suddhi, purity of mind and Chiththa Ekagratha, single-pointedness of the mind and  make one worthy  for attaining BrahmaVidya.  Mantra 12 talks of such a person who has gained Chiththa Sudhdhi and Chiththa Ekagratha, through Nishkama karma and upasana,  and who turns to Jnaana Kanda, desiring the higher goal of inner liberation, freedom from samsara, here and now.

pareekshya lokaan karma-chitaan braahmanah,

nirvedam aayaan na asti akritah kritena I

 tad vijnaanaartham sah gurum eva abhigacchhet,

samitpaanih shrotriyam brahma-nishtham.II  

After thoroughly examining the worlds gained by Karma, let a Brahmana (a seeker) free himself from all desires by reflecting that things Eternal cannot be had by (temporal) actions.  In order to obtain the knowledge of the Eternal, let him approach that spiritual preceptor, who is well-versed in the scriptures, and who is firmly established in the Truth, in the prescribed manner with fuel in hand. (1-2-12)

This Mantra emphasizes that he should go to a guru to have the higher knowledge given in Jnaana Kanda, which is the source of knowledge for BrahmaVidya.  In this Mantra both the guru lakshanam and sishya lakshanam are given.  Having rejected the material goals and the Vishayananda it gives in favour of the higher goal of Moksha and Athmananda this person has demonstrated his viveka, vairaagya, and mumukshuthvam.  He has practiced the karma and upasana as outlined in Karma Kanda and thereby has got the inner discipline that comes from Samadhi shatka sampathi.  So he is a fit student for BrahmaVidya.  It is advised that he goes to the guru with dry fuel, as offering.  Dry fuel, samit is not only a much needed material for Yajna, but also an indication of the person’s preparedness to absorb the teaching just as samit is ready to catch fire.  This also is a mark of his shraddha and humility.  The guru lakshanam is given as shrotriya and brahma-nishtha i.e. he should be a person well versed in sastras and also he should have a personal realization of Brahman, the cosmic eternal principle, as Athma, the true eternal principle in himself.  Only this personal realization will give a ring of conviction to his teaching of Jeeeva Brahma Ikyam, the central point of BrahmaVidya.  The student has to realize this Ikyam himself, through the study of sastras under guru’s guidance.  As guru has to guide him in his inner journey properly, he should be not only proficient in Sastras but he should also have the personal realization of the Ikyam.  And for the student to be able to realize it himself, he should have the right attitude and the mental refinement.  Sri Krishna echoes this point only in Gita when he says:

Tadviddhi pranipaatena pariprashnena sevayaa I

Upadekshyanti te jnaanam jnaaninas tattwadarshinah.II 

Know that by long prostration, by question and by service, the wise who have realised the Truth will instruct you in (that) knowledge. (4-34)

The emphatic assertion that the learned guru, who has realized the truth, will teach without any reservation, when a duly qualified student approaches him in a proper manner, with humility and shraddha, is conveyed in Mantra 13, the last Mantra of the first Mundaka.

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Mundaka Upanishad – 2

Brahma Lakshanam

Upadesa of guru Angiras starts from Mantra 7 as reply to the question asked by Saunaka.  First he divides the entire range of knowledge into two classes; 1) knowledge of Brahman, 2) knowledge of all that has come from Brahman.  The first he calls as Para Vidya, higher knowledge, and the second he calls as Apara Vidya, lower knowledge.  The distinction, higher and lower, is not from the point of view of knowledge but from the point of view of the subject of knowledge.  Para Vidya is the knowledge of supreme Brahman who is eternal and Apara Vidya is the knowledge of the universe which is ephemeral.  In Apara Vidya all the Vedas and all the ancillary sciences of that time are included.  In Vedas, the former portion dealing with rituals and upasanas, called Veda purva bhaga or Karma Khanda only are included in Apara Vidya.  The latter portion of Vedas, dealing with Brahman, and Jiva, the individual, Jagat, the universe and their relationship with each other, called Veda anta Bhaga or Jnaana Khanda is the only knowledge coming under Para Vidya.  After this classification of knowledge, guru Angiras proceeds to give Brahma Lakshanam in Mantra 6. 

yat tad adreshyam, agraahyam, agotram, avarnam,

achakshuh shrotram, tad apaani paadam;

nityam, vibhum, sarvagatam, susookshmam, tad avyayam,

yad bhootayonim paripashyanti dheeraah.

That which is invisible, ungraspable, un-originated, and attributeless; having neither eyes nor ears, neither hands nor legs;  eternal, full of manifestations, all-pervading, subtlest of the subtle, the Imperishable, and perceived by the wise only as the source of all creation. (1-1-6)

This is termed direct definition or swarupa lakshanam.  But Brahman is not an object that can be defined directly.  So it is defined ingenuously in a way that mind cannot conceive of it as an object from the definition, negative or positive.  Negatively it is defined as not visible, not graspable, having no origin, no attributes, no eyes, no ears, no hands, no feet.  That means it is not available for the senses to perceive and thereby for the mind to conceive as an object.  And as it has no organs to operate, it has no form or shape and it is not subject to changes.  Positively, it is defined as eternal, all pervading, immeasurably subtle, of manifold expression and is the source of creation.  This also defies imagination.  The Mantra goes on to say that this can be realized only by discriminating wise men referred to by the term ‘dheeraah’.  This term refers to one who has the four fold qualifications called sadhana chathushtaya sampathi, which are viveka, vairagya, samadhi shatka sampathi  and  mumukshuthvam which are as follows:

·        viveka - discrimination.  He knows Brahman is the only eternal one and gives top priority to seeking that knowledge of Brahman.

·        vairagya - dispassion.  To everything else he accords low priority.

·        Samadhi shatka sampathi  - six fold disciplines of mind control, sense control, withdrawal, endurance of opposites, faith in the words of guru and sastras and single-pointedness of the mind.

·        mumukshuthvam  -  desire for Moksha i.e. freedom from samsara.

The term used to refer to Brahman as source of creation is ‘bhootayoni’ meaning It is the womb of the Pancha Bhutas, which make up the universe.  This shows that Brahman is the only material cause for the universe, and the Brahman has karana–karya  sambandha or cause–effect relationship with the universe.  From this it follows:

1.   As cause, it pervades the universe in all its aspects.

2.   As cause, it is the very essence of the universe and all the things of the universe are only Brahman +nama,and rupa

3.   As cause Brahman is nityam, permanent, and as effect, the universe is anityam, perishable

                   4. Brahman as cause is singular while the universe as effect is plural

These aspects of cause-effect relationship can be verified from the examples of gold and gold ornaments, clay and mud pots etc.  In these examples we have one other aspect.  There are two causes for creation; namely the material cause, Upadhana Karanam and the intelligent cause, Nimitha Karanam.  For the gold ornaments gold is the material cause, goldsmith, the intelligent cause.  For the mud pots, clay is the material cause, potter, the intelligent cause etc.  We have seen from Mantra 6 that Brahman is the material cause for this universe.  Mantra 7, 8 and 9 refer to the uniqueness of Brahman as the intelligent cause as well, for this universe. Mantra 7 gives three examples to illustrate three aspects of creation.

1.   Spider and the web, it weaves out of itself and withdraws into itself - Brahman is similarly the material and intelligent cause for the universe it brings out and dissolves in itself, but this example has the defect of implying that creation may involve a selfish intention as in the case of spider’s web.

2.   Earth producing various plants and trees of different shapes and colours - Similarly the manifold objects of the universe are created from one Brahman and that Brahman is the adhishtanam for the whole universe. Here, no doubt, no personal, selfish intention is possible but it has the defect that the earth, from which the herbs sprout, is inert which is not the case with Brahman

3.   Sentient body giving rise to insentient hair on the head and all over the body -  Similarly the insentient things of the universe have also come from sentient Brahman only and also the creation is  an effortless projection and it also shows that the creation is a process with vitality as well. 

In Mantra 8, it is revealed that Brahman which is ordinarily without attributes, Nirguna, expands itself with its power of Maya Sakthi to become Iswara, the Saguna Brahman or Brahman with attributes, to initiate creation through its Sankalpa.  So, through this, it is established that Brahman is the Abinna Nimitta Upadhana Karanam for Jagat i.e. the unbroken intelligent, material cause for the universe and on this basis Saunaka’s question can be rephrased as ‘what is the knowledge of Brahman?’ Or ‘Please teach me BrahmaVidya!’  The first Khanda ends with Mantra 9 that glorifies Iswara as Sarvajna and Sarvavit indicating that Iswara has a thorough knowledge not only of the overall aspect of creation, but also of every detail of its execution.

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Mundaka Upanishad - 1

 

Introduction & Sishya’s question

Upanishad means BrahmaVidya, knowledge of Brahman, the Cosmic Supreme.  The word upanishad primarily refers to the knowledge of the Brahman, and secondarily to the book that contains the knowledge of Brahman.  Upanishads form the end portion of Vedas, Veda anta bhaga, and so are called Vedanta as well. Since this portion deals with the knowledge of Brahman and its realization and gives the knowledge of jeeva, the individual, jagat, the universe and their relationship with each other and with Brahman, this is the philosophical portion of Vedas and is called the jnana khanda.  The earlier portion of Vedas, Veda purva bhaga, deals only with karmas and upasanas and is called the karma khanda.

Mundaka Upanishad is a medium sized Upanishad that belongs to Atharva Veda. There are 64 Mantras spread over 3 chapters called mundakas. Each chapter is divided into two sections called khandas. So there are in all 6 khandas or sections. The Upanishad derives its name from the Sirovrutha ritual, mentioned in the Atharva Veda, the chief feature of which is carrying a pot of fire on the shaven head. This ritual is also referred to in the Upanishad itself in the penultimate mantra. Shaven head is referred to as mundaka. Again mundaka also refers to head itself, which shows the importance or primacy of this Upanishad in BrahmaVidya study.

This Upanishad opens with the peace invocation (shanthi paata), which is unique to all upanishads belonging to Atharva Veda. Through this peace invocation the student prays for 1) sound physical, intellectual and emotional health, 2) A full life of worshipful attitude to all devas and 3) freedom from all types of obstacles that may hinder successful completion of the study and understanding of the Upanishad.  Swami Vivekananda interprets the first two lines of this shanthi mantra as” Let positive strong helpful thoughts enter into our brain from childhood”

The shanthi Mantra, which is self-explanatory, runs as:

“Om bhadram karnebhih shrunuyaama devaah Bhadram pashyemaakshabhiryajatraah I Sthirairangaistushtuvaamsastanoobhih
Vyashema devahitam yadaayuh I Swasti na indro vridhashravaah
Swasti nah pooshaa vishwavedaah I Swasti nastaarkshyo arishtanemih
Swasti no brihaspatir dadhaatu.II  Om shantih, shantih, shantih!  II”

Om, O Devas, may our ears hear what is good and auspicious! May we see what is auspicious! May we sing your praise, live our allotted span of life in perfect health and strength! May Indra (who is) extolled in the scriptures, Surya, the all-knowing, Garuda, who saves from all harm, and Brihaspati who protects our spiritual lustre, vouchsafe prosperity in our study of the scriptures and the practice of the truths contained therein! Om peace, peace, peace!

The shanti mantra like all shanthi mantras, ends as “Om shantih, shantih, shantih! ”.  Here Om is the sound representation of Brahman.  ‘shantih’ stands for the peace that comes from the removal of obstacles to the successful pursuit of study of upanishd.  The obstacles are classified into three types.  These are:

1.   Adhyathmikam – Obstacles arising from within oneself like one’s personal ill-health, negative mood etc. 

2.   Aadhi bauthikam – Obstacles arising from other known sources or external situations like ill-health of a family member, noisy neighbourhood etc.

     3. Aadhi daivikam – obstacles arising from unseen sources like floods, storm etc. 

In the first two Mantras of the first section of the first Mundaka, the glory of BrahmaVidya is revealed.  This has originated from Brahmaji himself who taught it to his eldest son Atharva.  This knowledge in guru-Sishya lineage has come down to Angiras Rishi who is the guru in this Upanishad.  The sishya is Saunaka who is described as ‘महाशाला’ (Mahasaala) meaning he is a great householder who has established and maintains annasalas, dharmasalas and yajnasaalas.  This indicates he is a rich pious man of charitable nature who has performed many yajnaas.  He approaches guru Angiras, with shraddha and humility and asks for BrahmaVidya with the question in 1-1-3.

Kasmin nu bhagavo vijaate, sarvam-idam vijnaatam bhavati iti.?  (1-1-3)

What is it, O revered sir, knowing which everything in this universe becomes known?”

The above is the Vachyartha or the word meaning of this question.  Lakshyartha or the implied meaning  is “what is the source of this universe or the original  cause of creation, knowing which the essence of this universe will be known?”.  This can be further interpreted as “What is the eternal principle behind this ephemeral  universe?”.  Since Brahman is the eternal principle, which is the source of creation, this finally means BrahmaVidya, knowledge of Brahman.  This Mantra 3, also underscores a few important points.

1.   The importance of guru, as Lakshyartha has to be taken for many of the mantras and not mere Vachyartha.  Going by dictionary meaning, one may not understand or much worse, one may misunderstand totally and arrive at erroneous conclusions.

2.   One approaches the guru and asks for the knowledge specifically, demonstrating his keenness and worthiness for the knowledge.  The very question of Saunaka demonstrates that he is aware of the technicalities of the communication technique adopted in the Upanishad

3,  The Mantra uses the word  विधिवत्  (Vidhivat) to describe his approach to Guru  which is as laid down in sastras, that is  with humility and shraddha.

Shraddha means:

1. Faith in the validity of sastras as source of knowledge about Brahman

2.   Faith in Guru for interpreting the sastras properly

3.  Faith in himself that he can acquire that knowledge through guru upadesa. 

Upadesa of guru Angiras starts from Mantra 4, and will be discussed from next blog.

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