Aparokshanubhuthi – 7

 

Anathma mithyathvam

Verse 65

Sarvo'pi vyavaharastu brahmana kriyate janaih I

Ajnananna vijananti mrdeva hi ghatadikam II

People perform all their actions in and through Brahman (but on account of ignorance they are not aware of that), just as through ignorance persons do not know that pots and other earthenware are nothing but clay.

Verse 66

Karyakaranata nityamaste ghatamrdoryatha I

Tathaiva srutiyuktibhyaṃ prapanchabrahmanoriha II

Just as there ever exists the relation of cause and effect between clay and pot, so does the same relation exist between Brahman and the world; this has been established here on the strength of scriptural texts and reasoning.

Verse 67

Gṛhyamane ghate yadvanmrttika'yati vai balat I

Vikshamane prapanche'pi brahmaivabhati bhasuram II

Just as (the idea of) clay forces itself upon our mind while thinking of the pot, so also does (the idea of) ever-shining Brahman flash on us while contemplating on the world.

Verse 68

Sadaivathma visuddho'sti hyasuddho bhati vai sada I

Yathaiva dvividha rajjurjnanino'jnanino'nisam II

Athma, though ever pure (to a Jnani), always appears to be impure (to an ajjnani), just as a rope always appears in two different ways to a Jnani and ajjnani.

 The above four verses declare the sarvathma bhava through Sruthi quotations and examples. Verse 65 states that as Brahman alone appears as the world, whenever one deals with the world, one is dealing with Brahman alone since Consciousness and existence are common in all transactions and they represent Brahman who is Sat-Chit swarupa. Further Brahman being the karanam for the world, the world is only Brahman plus nama-rupa-karya.   But due to ajjnanam one is not aware of it, like the one who through ignorance is not aware of the fact that while dealing with earthenware, he is dealing with its cause, clay only. This fact is repeated in verse 66, with the statement that there is Sruthi Pramanam to support the statement that karana-karya-sambandha exists between Brahman and world.  These Pramanams were quoted earlier while discussing Jagat mithyathvam.  Verse 67 states a fact of life that like one thinking of clay as well sometimes when dealing with pot, one thinks about Brahman also while contemplating about the evanescent nature of the world. Verse 68 points out that to a Jnani the world appears ever pure as he sees it always as Brahman while to an ajjnani the world appears ever-impure.  This is like two visions of the rope.  To a person with the rope-ignorance the rope appears as a snake, while to the person with rope-knowledge the rope appears as a rope only.

Verse 69

Yathaiva mrnmayah kumbhastadvaddeho'pi chinmayah I

Athmanathmanvibhago'yaṃ mudhaiva kriyate'budhaih II

Just as a pot is all clay, so also the body is all Consciousness.  The division therefore, into the Athma and anathma is made by the ignorant in vain.

In this verse Sri Sankara argues that taking the Athma-anathma-Viveka to its logical conclusion of anathma mithyatvam leaves one only with the Athma which is all Consciousness. So the body as the karyam, is no different from the karanam and so is all Consciousness as well like the pot being all earth.  As karanam pervades the karyam, Consciousness pervades the body.  So making the division of body and Consciousness after gaining Jnanam is a waste of effort to be indulged in by ajjnani only.

To fix firmly in the mind the point of anathma mithyatvam, Sri Sankara repeats the examples given earlier with new ones in the ensuing verses 70 to 74.  All these verses have the same second line which emphasising anathma mithyathvam says: “So is the Athma determined to be the body by an ignorant person”.  In the first line the examples are given. They are: -

1)    Rope being seen as a snake - verse 70

2)    Sea-shell being seen as silver - verse 70

3)    Clay being thought of as pot - verse 71

4)    Threads being thought of as cloth - verse 71

5)    Gold being thought of as ear-ring - verse 72

6)    Water being thought of as waves - verse 72

7)    Stump of tree being seen as human figure - verse 73

8)    Mirage being seen as water – verse 73

9)    Wood-work being seen as house – verse 74

10)  Iron being seen as sword – verse 74

The same idea is repeated from verses 75 to 86 also but with new examples.  In these verses also the same second line is repeated while the first line describes the example. The common second line is “So does a person on account of ignorance see Athma as the body”.  The examples given are: -

1)    Illusion of a tree in the water – verse 75

2)    Illusion of everything being in motion to a person riding the boat – verse 76

3)    White things appearing yellow to a person suffering from jaundice – verse 77

4)    Everything appearing to be defective to a person with defective eyes – verse 78

5)    Firebrand in rotation appearing circular like the sun – verse 79

6)    Things that are really large appearing to be small owing to great distance – verse 80

7)    Objects that are very small appearing to be large when viewed through lenses – verse 81

8)    A surface of glass being mistaken for water or vice versa – verse 82

9)    A person imagining a jewel in fire or vice versa – verse 83

10)  The moon appearing to be in motion when the clouds move – verse 84

11)   A person through confusion losing all distinction between the different points of the compass – verse 85

 12) The moon reflected in water appearing to one as unsteady – verse 86

Verse 87

Evamathmanyavidyato dehadhyaso hi jayate I

Sa evathmaparijnanalliyate cha parathmani II

Thus through ignorance arises in Athma the delusion of the body, which again through Self-realization, disappears in the supreme Athma (Brahman)

Verse 88

Sarvamathmataya jnatam jagatsthavarajangamam I

Abhavatsarvabhavanam dehasya chathmatha kutah II

When the whole universe, movable and immovable, is known to be Athma (Brahman) and thus the existence of everything else is negated, where is then any room to say that the body is Athma?

Verse 87 states that so long as there is ignorance of Self, mistaking the body as Self, the Athma, will continue.  Through Self-realization, when one realizes that Athma (Brahman) alone is Real and nothing else is Real, ajjnanam with all its effects, such as the delusion of body as Athma, ceases to exist and they stand dissolved in terms of understanding.  In verse 88 this idea is re-emphasised. The world with all its sentient and non-sentient beings and objects is Brahman, super Self, only, one realises with the dawn of Self-knowledge. That means Brahman only is Real and the world of movable and immovable objects is non-substantial and mithya. With this realization on acquisition of Self-knowledge, the confusion of body with Athma ends as body is not separate from the world and is only mithya.  Mithya body cannot be the Sathya Athma.

With this verse, the discussion on anathma mithyathvam ends and from next verse discussion on prarabhdha starts with an advice to the enlightened student.

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