Chandogya upanishad (Ch.6,7&8)–33

 Chapter 8, Sections13,14,15 (the end)

Mantra 8-13-1

syamacchabalam prapadye sabalacchyamaṃ prapadye'sva iva romani vidhuya papam chandra iva rahormukhatpramuchya dhutva sariramakrtam krtatma brahmalokamabhisambhavamityabhisambhavamiti || 8.13.1|| iti trayodasah khandah ||

From the dark may I attain the diverse; from the diverse may I attain the dark. Shaking off papams as a horse shakes dust from its hair, freeing myself from the body as the moon frees itself from the mouth of Rahu, I fulfil all ends and obtain the eternal Brahmaloka. End of section thirteen

            In this Mantra, we have a prayer uttered by a saguna upasaka who is a seeker of krama mukthi. So he prays that he may shed all the papams, which are the obstacles for krama mukthi, before death, like the horse shaking itself free of all dust from its body and travel to Brahmaloka, attain Nirguna Brahma Jnanam there and get rid of the body like moon freeing itself from the hold of Rahu, at the end of the eclipse, through krama mukthi.  Swami Paramarthananda terms this and next Mantra as obscure Mantras as it is difficult to understand them without the help of Sri Sankara’s commentary.   For instance the Upanishad calls the Daharakasa Brahmaloka, inner Brahmaloka, syamam, dark, and the heavenly Brahmaloka as sabalam, diverse and gives the upasaka’s prayer as “I should get back to sabalam from this syamam” meaning he should travel to Brahmaloka after death to get krama mukthi as he has not got Nirguna Brahma Jnanam and also for him body is real.  With this prayer this section ends.

Mantra 8-14-1

akaso vai nama namarupayornirvahita te yadantara tadbrahma tadamrtam sa athma prajapateh sabham vesma prapadye yaso'ham bhavami brahmananam yaso rajnam yasovisaṃ yaso'hamanuprapatsi sa haham yasasam yasah syetamadatkamadatkam syetam lindu mabhigam lindu mabhigam || 8.14.1 || iti chaturdasah khandah ||

That which is described as Akasa manifests names and forms. These names and forms are within Brahman. Brahman is immortal; it is the Athma. May I attend the court of Prajapati. May I attain the glory of a brahmin, and also of a kshatriya and a vaisya. I wish to attain that glory. I am the glory of glories. May I not be born again and have a body covered with blood and dirt, which is toothless and at the same time wanting to eat.  End of section fourteen.

            Here the definition of Brahman is given for meditation as one who is bodiless, all-pervading like Akasa and that the Athma is Brahman.   The Upanishad also describes Brahman as that in which all the names and forms exist, and which is unattached and unaffected by them.  Brahman manifests them on Creation as Saguna Brahman through the power of Maya. This upasaka meditates on Akasa as Saguna Brahman. The latter part of the Mantra gives his prayer for travel to Brahmaloka after death and attaining krama mukthi there. His prayer for krama mukthi is expressed in two ways.  One as a prayer for all the glories of all the beings to be his in Brahmaloka, as this is possible only if he merges in Brahman, as Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita (10-41);

Yadyad vibhootimat sattwam shreemadoorjitameva vaa;

Tattadevaavagaccha twam mama tejom’shasambhavam.

Whatever being there is that is glorious, prosperous or powerful, that know thou to be a manifestation of a part of My splendour.

Second as the prayer for freedom from re-birth with its attendant freedom from the stay in womb wherein as a foetus one wallows toothless in blood and dirt. With this prayer this section ends.

Mantra 8-15-1

tadhaitadbrahma prajapataya uvacha prajapatirmanave manuh prajabhyaḥ acharyakuladvedamadhitya yathavidhanam guroh karmatiseshenabhisamavrtya kutumbe suchau dese svadhyayamadhiyano dharmikanvidadhadatmani sarvendriyani sampratishthapyahimsansarva bhutanyanyatra tirthebhyah sa khalvevam vartayanyavadayusham brahmalokamabhisampadyate na cha punaravartate na cha punaravartate || 8.15.1 || iti panchadasah khandah ||

Brahma taught this knowledge of the Athma to Prajapati, Prajapati to Manu, Manu to mankind. He who has studied the Vedas at the house of a teacher, according to the prescribed rules, during the time left after the performance of his duties to the teacher; he who, after leaving the teacher’s house, has settled down into a householder’s life and continued the study of the Vedas in an undisturbed place and made others (i.e. his sons and disciples) virtuous; he who has withdrawn all the sense— organs into the Athma; he who has not given pain to any creature except as approved by the scriptures—he who conducts himself thus, all through his life, reaches the World of Brahman after death and does not return.  End of Section fifteen.

            First the Upanishad highlights the importance of this teaching by stating that this teaching has come down from Brahma in the form of an unbroken guru-sishya parampara.  Brahma taught to Prajapathi and Prajapathi to Manu and Manu to his descendants, the mankind.  Then it outlines the conducive life-style to be pursued by one for carrying on the tradition and benefitting by it and to ensure the continuity of the tradition. First step is, stay in a gurukulam as a Brahmachari, serving the guru and learning the Vedas from the guru. Second step is; after completion of the stay in gurukulam, return home, get married and start to live as a Grihastha and in family life, to continue the study of Vedas undisturbed in a secluded place, allotting time for it among one’s other duties as a Grihastha and live a dharmic life as prescribed by the Vedas.  He must also take care to bring up his children virtuous and at an appropriate time after they become mature responsible adults, withdraw from family responsibilities to pursue actively the spiritual sadhanas practising ahimsa among other religious disciplines. This can be done practicing an introvert, withdrawal life-style, even staying with the family or taking to sanyasa as the final step.  One who leads such a life practicing Vedic values, engaged in upasana of Brahman is assured of travel to Brahmaloka after death.  Getting krama mukthi there, he is freed from the return to a womb. With this Mantra, the section, the chapter, as well as the Upanishad end and only the Shanthi Mantra which was given at the beginning of the Upanishad is repeated which we shall see now.

Shanthi Mantra

Om. aapyaayantu mamangaani, vaak praanah chakshuh srotramatho balam indriyaani cha sarvaani. I sarvam Brahmaupanishadam, ma’ham Brahma niraakuryam maa maa Brahma niraakarod  aniraakaranam astu, aniraakaranam me astu I tad aatmani nirate ya upanishatsu dharmah, te mayi santu, te mayi santu. I Om shanti shanti shanti II

May my limbs, speech, Prana, eye, ear and power of all my senses grow vigorous.  All is Brahman of the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman; may Brahman never spurn me. May there be no denial of Brahman; may there be no spurning by Brahman; may I take delight in that Athma; May the virtues recited in the Upanishads repose in me; may they repose in me I Om Peace, Peace, Peace II

            Through this Shanthi Mantra the sishya seeks a sound sthula, sukshma sareera that will enable him to absorb the teaching and pursue studies without interference of physical and mental problems.   Particular mention is made of speech, Prana, eye and ear among other limbs.  Speech implying communication skill is important in Mananam for conveying the doubts to guru seeking clarification.  Prana is important for general health and vitality for concentration in studies without distraction.   Eye should be problem-free to study the Sastras. The importance of ear in Sravanam needs no emphasis. The essence of Vedanta is stated in the invocation with the affirmation that everything is only the Brahman of Upanishads.  Sishya prays that neither his faith in Brahman nor the grace of Brahman should desert him at any time, and repeats it for emphasis.  He also seeks as a devoted student of AthmaJnanam all the qualification required for BrahmaVidya studies namely sadhana chathushtaya sampathi, i.e. the fourfold discipline of discrimination, dispassion, sixfold discipline, and the intense desire for moksha purushartha.   The invocation ends with the traditional prayer for peace from the three types of obstacles, also called tapatrayam, as given below:

1. Adhyathmikam – Obstacles arising from within oneself like one’s personal ill-health, negative mood etc.  i.e. obstacles arising from oneself.
2. Aadhi bauthikam – Obstacles arising from other known sources or external situations like ill-health of a family member, noisy neighbourhood etc. i.e. obstacles arising from one’s environs.
3. Aadhi daivikam – obstacles arising from unseen sources like floods, storm etc. obstacles arising from nature

Acknowledgement

While concluding the series of blogs on ‘Chandogya upanishad (Ch.6,7&8)’ I wish to record my deep debt of gratitude to the speeches and writings on this subject, of:

1)  Swami Lokeswarananda

2)  Swamini Vimalananda

3)  Swami Paramarthananda 

4)  Swami Guruparananda

5)  Swami  Gurubhakthananda &

6)  Swami  Swahananda

--------------------

Taittiriya Upanishad - 3

 Two Shanthi Mantras

Sikshavalli ends with a Shanthi Mantra as anuvaka 12. This Shanthi Mantra is the same as the one in anuvaka 1 with a difference in tense of verbs used in the latter part of the Shanthi Mantra. While in the earlier one it was a submission to the Supreme, here it is a statement of satisfaction at being blessed with His Grace. The Mantra is:

Om sam no mitrah sam varunah I sam no bhavatvaryama I

sam na indro brihaspatih I sam no vishnururukramah I

namo brahmane I namaste vayo I

tvameva pratyaksham brahmasi I

tvameva pratyaksham brahma vadisham I

ritamavadisham I satyamavadisham I

tanmamaviit I tadvaktaramaviit I

aaviinmam I aaviidvaktaram I

Om Shanthi, Shanthi, Shanthi II

May Mitra be propitious unto us. May Varuna be propitious unto us. May Aryaman be propitious unto us. May Indra and Brihaspati be propitious unto us. May Vishnu, of wide strides, be propitious unto us. Salutation to Brahman. Salutation to Thee, O Vayu! Thou indeed are the visible Brahman. Thee indeed I proclaimed as the visible Brahman. Thee indeed, O Vayu, I proclaimed as the Ritam. Thee indeed I proclaimed as the Satyam. That protected me! That protected the teacher! Protected me! Protected the teacher! Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!

       The second chapter is known by three names, Brahmavalli, Anandavalli and Brahmandavalli.  The chapter begins with the word Brahma and so is called Brahmavalli.  A beautiful analysis of Ananda, Ananda mimamsa, is given in the chapter and so is called Anandavalli. Since it starts with the word Brahma and contains the analysis of Ananda, it is called Brahmanandavalli, which name we will be using.  It starts with a Shanthi Mantra which is repeated in the beginning of the third chapter also.  This Shanthi Mantra is a popular Mantra and is recited in school prayers as well, as it prays for good rapport between the teacher and the student besides praying for the good health of both and for removal of obstacles to the successful pursuit of study of Upanishad.  Swami Paramarthananda calls it “a beautiful santipatah, specifically geared for a Vedāntic student”.  Because through this Shanthi Mantra the student is praying for the five factors that are very important for Vedantic study, namely self-effort, grasping and retention power, healthy relationship with Guru, Jnanam and Jnanaphalam.  The Mantra is:

Om saha naavavatu I saha nau bhunaktu I saha veeryam karavaavahai I

tejaswi naavadheetamastu maa vidvishaavahai I Om Shanthi, Shanthi, Shanthi II

May He protect us both (teacher and the taught)! May He cause us both to enjoy the bliss of Mukti! May we both exert to discover the true meaning of the sacred scriptures! May our studies be fruitful! May we never quarrel with each other! Om peace, peace, peace!

            The meaning of the different segments of the Mantra are as follows:

Om stands for Brahman . 

saha naavavatu - May the Supreme protect us both the teacher and taught.

saha nau bhunaktu -  May He bless us both to enjoy the fruits of this knowledge.

 saha veeryam karavaavahai - May we both put forth efforts together to find out the true meaning of the Scriptures.

tejaswi naavadheetam-astu - May our studies be fruitful, i.e. it should be available when needed.

maa vidvishaavahai - May we not misunderstand each other as persons and as communication wise.

Om shanti, shanti, shanti - Here Om is the sound representation of Brahman.  shanti stands for the peace that comes from the removal of obstacles to the successful pursuit of study of Upanishad.  The word shanti is repeated thrice as the obstacles are of three-fold nature. They are:

1. Adhyathmikam – Obstacles arising from within oneself like one’s personal ill-health, negative mood etc.  i.e. obstacles arising from oneself.
2. Aadhi bauthikam – Obstacles arising from other known sources or external situations like ill-health of a family member, noisy neighbourhood etc. i.e. obstacles arising from one’s environs.
3. Aadhi daivikam – obstacles arising from unseen sources like floods, storm etc. obstacles arising from nature

---------------------------------------

Taittriya Upanishad – 2

 Parting advice to students

The eleventh anuvaka contains the final instruction which the students in those days received when they completed their Vedic studies under the Guru, before leaving the gurukulam which is called sishya-anusasanam (rules for a student).  This is similar to the present day convocation address and gives the students leaving gurukulam at the end of Vedic studies general guidelines for post-gurukulam life.  This can be seen also as Guru’s parting advice to students for leading good life in keeping with their studies, a manifesto for “Hindu way of way of living”, as Swami Chinmayananda puts it.   These instructions can also be seen as a passport to a post-student life of peace, happiness and prosperity for students even today as in life one’s needs are cultural and spiritual as well and not just physical alone.  We shall see all the Mantras together

vedam anoochya aachaaryah antevaasinam anushaasti;

satyam vada; dharmam chara; swaadhyaayaat maa pramadah;

aachaaryaaya priyam dhanam aahritya;

prajaatantum maa vyavacchhetseeh;

satyanna na pramaditavyam; dharmanna na pramaditavyam;

kushalanna na pramaditavyam; bhootyai na pramaditavyam;

swaadhyaaya pravachanaabhyaam na pramaditavyam;

deva-pitru-kaaryaabhyaam na pramaditavyam….1

Having taught the Vedas, the teacher thus instructs the pupils: Speak the truth. Practise Dharma. Do not neglect the study of the Vedas. Having brought to the teacher the gift desired by him, enter the householder's life and see that the line of progeny is not cut off. Do not swerve from the truth. Do not swerve from Dharma. Do not neglect personal welfare. Do not neglect prosperity. Do not neglect the study and teaching of the Vedas. Do not neglect your duties to the Gods and the departed souls.

maatru devoh bhava; pitru devoh bhava;

acharyadevoh bhava; atithih devoh bhava;

yaani anavadyaani karmaani; taani sevitavyaani; no itaraani;

yaani asmaakam sucharitaani; taani tvayaa upaasyaani; no itaraani… 2

Treat your mother as God. Treat your father as God. Treat your teacher as God. Treat your guest as God.  Let the actions that are free from blemishes only be done; and not any others; Let those virtuous actions which are irreproachable only be followed by you; and not any others.

ye ke cha asmat shreyaam sah braahmanaah;

teshaam tvayaa aasanena prashvasitavyam;.

shraddhayaa deyam, ashraddhayaa adeyam;

shriyaa deyam, hriyaa deyam;

bhiyaa deyam, samvidaa deyam…3

When the Brahmanas who are more distinguished than us are in discussion, you must offer them a seat and provide them with honourable services.  Gifts (charity) should be given with faith. Never give without faith; give in plenty, give with modesty; give with sympathy; give with friendly feelings

atha yadi te karma-vichikitsaa vaa vritta-vicikitsaa vaa syaat;

ye tatra braahmanaah sammarshinah; yuktaah aayuktaah;

alookshaa dharmakaamaah syuh;

yathaa te tatra varteran; tathaa tatra vartethaah;

atha abhyaakhyaateshu; ye tatra braahmanaah sammarshinah; yuktaah aayuktaah;

alookshaa dharmakaamaah syuh;

yathaa te teshu varteran; tathaa teshu vartethaah

eshah aadeshah; eshah upadeshah; eshaa vedopanishat; etat anushaasanam;

evam upaasitavyam; evamu cha etat upaasitavyam…4

Now, if there arises in your mind any doubt concerning any act, or any doubt concerning conduct, you should conduct yourself in such matters as Brahmanas would conduct themselves-Brahmanas who are competent to judge, who of their own accord are devoted to good deed and are not urged to their performance by others and who are not too severe, but are devoted to Dharma.  Now when you are falsely accused of some crime; You should act as Brahmanas do - Brahmanas who are competent to judge, who of their own accord are devoted to good deed and are not urged to their performance by others and who are not too severe, and are devoted to Dharma.This is the Command; This is the teaching; This is the secret of the Vedas; This commandment is to be observed; In this way you should live; In this way, verily, you should act.

              A selection from these instructions that can be a source of guidance and inspiration even this day as well is listed below with a brief commentary to follow.

1)    satyam vada; satyan na pramaditavyam. (Be truthful.   Do not swerve from truthfulness.) - One should maintain harmony between thought and speech, without hypocrisy or a motive to do injury.  Truthfulness is also required to cultivate love between members of family.  Truthfulness needs no ‘maintenance’, while a lie needs more lies and constant effort to maintain it.

2)    dharmam chara ; dharman na pramaditavyam.( Follow Dharma. May you not neglect the dharmic way of living.) – To be righteous and follow a religious way of living, means being just and compassionate in everything one plans or does.  Swami Vivekananda says “The world can be good and pure only if our lives are good and pure”

3)    svadhyayat ma pramadaḥ ; svadhyaya pravacanabhyam na pramaditavyam. (Never neglect scriptural study.   Never neglect the study and propagation of Vedas) - Scriptural study reminds one of Vedic values and Niyata Karmas and sharing with others helps one to keep in mind what has been learned.

4)    kusalan na pramaditavyam. (Do not neglect personal welfare) - One should not neglect the duty to oneself and one’s family in the name of serving the society.  It is not selfish to take care of one’s well-being and one’s family’s welfare; rather it is one’s duty.  It is only wrong to be selfish at the at the expense of the others.

5)    bhootyaih na pramaditavyam (Do not neglect prosperity) - Earn in plenty but earn legitimately and give in plenty, proportionate to the earning.  Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa used to advise people to earn well but not to consider earning as an end by itself.

6)    devapitrkaryabhyam na pramaditavyam (Do not neglect the duties to Gods and ancestors) - Worship of God is essential. Swmi Paramarthananda quotes an example from Bhagavatam. To nourish a tree, one pours water only at the root even though one wants to water every cell of the tree.  That water from the root will reach every cell in an invisible manner. Similarly, the universe is huge tree with many needy people. It is impossible to help every individual in the world. Therefore, the Vedas prescribe a method: serve or contribute to the universal tree whose root is Iswara.   Offering at least a spoonful of water, regularly worship Iswara asking for the welfare of the entire world and in that process purify the mind as well.  Similarly, pitrkaryam, the worship of the ancestors in the form of srardha, tarpaṇa etc. is also extremely important.  This helps one to attain chithasuddhi, that aids one’s spiritual growth.

7)    maatru devoh bhava; pitru devoḥ bhava; acharyadevoh bhava. (Treat your mother as God; Treat your father as God; Treat your teacher as God) - Have reverential attitude towards parents and teacher and offer them namaskara as one does to an idol in the temple.  One should not forget the sacrifices made and pains suffered by the elder generation to bring one up from infancy and groom as responsible intelligent youth.

8)    yanyanavadyani karmaṇi ; tani sevitavyani ; no itarani (Let the actions that are free from blemishes only be done; not others) - The Acharya, out of humility, here tells the pupils that they should take only the good from what they have experienced in their gurukulam life, and discard the others.

9)    ye ke cha asmat shreyaam sah braahmanaah; teshaam tvayaa aasanena prashvasitavyam. (When the Brahmanas who are more distinguished than us are in discussion, you must offer them a seat and provide them with honourable services.) -  Here Brahmanas stand for cultured, Vedic scholars. The idea is that one must be all ears and eyes when such scholars hold discussion on philosophical matters with the aim of learning from their discussions, while treating them respectfully as well.

10)  sraddhaya deyam ; asraddhyadeyam ; sriya deyam ; hriya deyam ; bhiya deyam ; saṃvida deyam. (Gifts (charity) should be given with faith. Never give without faith; give in plenty, give with modesty; give with sympathy; give with friendly feelings) – In short, gift must be a Satvic Dhanam as defined by Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita (17-20) i.e. “That gift which is given with a sense of duty expecting nothing in return, in a proper place and at proper time to a proper person, is pronounced as Satvic”.

-----------------------

Vivekachudamani – 8

 

Select verses 36 to 39

Verse 36

yo vijanati sakalam, jagratsvapnasusuptisu |

buddhitadvrttisadbhavam, abhavamahamityayam ||126॥

That which knows everything that happens in the waking, dream, and deep-sleep states; That which is aware of the presence or absence of the mind and its thoughts; That which is the essence behind the ego; That is “This”, the Athma.

Verse 37

yah pasyati svayam sarvaṃ, yam na pasyati kaschana |

yaschetayati buddhyadi, na tadyam chetayatyayam ||127||

That which sees all but which no one can see; That which illumines the intellect etc., but which they cannot illumine; That is the “Athma”.

Verse 38

prakrtivikrtibhinnah suddhabodhasvabhavah,

sadasadidamasesham bhasayannirvisesah |

vilasati paramatma jagradadhisvavasthasu,

ahamahamiti saksat saksirupena buddheh ||135||

The Paramathma shines directly as “I”, “I” in all the three states of experience like waking etc., as the witness of the mind, illumining without exception all this –elements and elementals- with forms and the formless, itself remaining changeless.

In the previous verse no 35, Acharya explained partly the svabhava of Athma.  In these verses unfolding further he states first in verse 36, “Athma is the one that lights up the three states of experience – waking, dreaming, deep sleep and the distinct experiences in all of them”.  In all the three states of experience the Athma is invariable.  That invariable presence of Athma is said as sakshi.  As sakshi, it is a passive knower contributing consciousness to every knowing act. It is a knower of the presence of mind and its thoughts in the waking and dream state and also the absence of mind in the deep sleep state through its mere presence. Kenopanishad(I.6) describing Brahman, that is Athma, the Real Self, says: “That which cannot be apprehended by the mind, but by which, they say, the mind is apprehended—That alone know as Brahman----“.  Again Brihadharanyaka Upanishad (3.4.2) says: “You cannot see the seer of seeing; you cannot hear the hearer of hearing; you cannot think of the thinker of thinking; you cannot know the knower of knowing. This is your Self (Athma)that is within all----“.   Athma, the Self, which is same as Brahman, the Paramathma, is the Pure Consciousness, the five features of which is summarised by Swami Paramarthananda as below:

1)    It is not a part, product or part of the body.

2)    It is an independent entity which pervades and enlivens the body

3)    It is not limited by the boundaries of the body

4)    It continues to exist/survive even after the death of the body

5)    It is not accessible after the death of the body because of the absence of the body-medium.

Athma is different from prakrithi, the cause and vikrithi, the effect, but prakrithi and vikrithi are not separate from Athma.  Maya is prakrithi and the universe made of five elements is the vikrithi. Of the five elements, three have form viz. fire, water and earth; and two elements viz. air and space are formless. Athma, as Paramathma illumines all these elements and elementals without itself undergoing any change. Athma is the aham “I”, which does not undergo any change and remains the same always and not the ego, ahamkara that is subject to change.  Even though Athma seems to play the role of seer, hearer etc., and that involves some kind of a change, that change is with reference to the ego and not the Athma.   Athma illumines the ego as well just as it illumines all the three states of experience as sakshi aham.

Verse 39

atranatmanyahamiti matih, bandha eso’sya puṃsah

prapto’jnanajjananamarana-klesasampatahetuh |

yenaivayaṃ vapuridamasat, satyamityatmabuddhya

pushyatyuksatyavati visayaih, tantubhih kosakrdvat ||137||

Due to ignorance, a person identifies Athma, the Self with the anathma, not-Self.  This is the bondage and brings in its wake the miseries of birth and death. Through this, one considers the unreal body as Real, identifies with it and nourishes, bathes and preserves it with the help of sense-objects. Thereby, one becomes bound like the silk-worm in its cocoon woven by its own threads.

    Acharya answers the first question of sishya in this verse, after talking about Athma and anathma.  The first question was – What is the nature of bondage?  The eternal, unchanging Athma, the pure Consciousness is the Real Self. The mortal, changing body-mind complex i.e. the three-fold body is the anathma, not-Self.  One in ignorance identifying one’s Self with anathma instead of with Athma is bondage. Body by itself is not bondage, only the mistaken identification of one’s Self with the body is the bondage.  Athma and anathma are not two parallel entities.  Anathma is mithya depending entirely on Athma.  The ‘I’ sense in anathma, the gross, subtle and causal bodies, is the mistake which is the cause of all problems, and is the bondage.  The bondage which is in the form of Self-confusion is the cause for samsara, the afflictions in the form of birth, death etc.  Looking upon the body as Self, ‘I’, one nourishes it, anoints it and protects it, but in spite of one’s care and attention, body falls ill, ages and grows old; making one sad.  The one who thinks that he is protecting the body with the objects is only setting a trap for himself like the silkworm.  The silkworm spins a cocoon around itself for safety, but the very cocoon becomes the cause of its death. Human beings weave a cocoon of objects for their protection and get trapped into the cycle of birth and death.  The Athma-buddhi in the anathma is the bondage. 

-----------------------

Vivekachudamani – 2

 Select verses 4 to 9

Verse 4

patanthu sastrani yajanthu devan, kurvantu karmaṇi bhajantu devataḥ |

atmaikyabodhena vina vimuktih, na sidhyati brahmasatantare’pi ||6||

Let people study the scriptures; let Devas be invoked through Vedic rituals; let them do altruistic activities, let personal gods be propitiated---yet, without the realization of one‘s identity with the Athma, there shall be no liberation for the individual, not even in the life times of a hundred Brahmas put together.

            After talking about the glory of human birth, Sri Sankara now starts discussing the means of Moksha.  For attaining Moksha, there is only one means i.e. gaining and imbibing Self-knowledge. All other means, study of scriptures, performance of Vedic rituals, sincere worship of Ishta Devata, altruistic activities, though good and dharmic by themselves earning Punyam for the performer cannot give one Moksha however long he tries with devotion. As the reason for one’s feeling of bondage is Self-ignorance and consequent Self-misapprehension, all the noble deeds like yajnas, charity and upasana cannot remove it.  Only Self-knowledge can remove Self-ignorance as light alone can remove darkness.  Self-knowledge is here described as ‘atmaikyabodha’ i.e. knowledge of non-duality of Athma, the Self, i.e. “There is only one Absolute Reality which is Athma”

Verse 5

chittasya suddhaye karma, na tu vastupalabdhaye |

vastusiddhirvicharena, na kinchit karmakotibhih ||11||

Actions help to purify the mind but they do not, by themselves, contribute to the attainment of Reality. The attainment of  Reality is brought about only by Self-Inquiry and not in the least by even ten million acts.

            This verse clearly defines the role of action in the pursuit of Self-knowledge. Actions stand for karma yoga actions like various yajnas, upasana yoga actions like meditation, and bhakthi yoga actions like prayer, bhajans. They help in purification of mind and making it single-minded, to pursue the knowledge but they cannot by themselves, individually and/or collectively give knowledge of Brahman, the Absolute, called here Reality.  The knowledge of Brahman is gained by enquiry alone i.e. vasthu-siddhi-vicharena. Vasthu here denotes Brahman, the Reality.  So the path to Self-enquiry is through the enquiry into sastras.  The enquiry into the sastras is to be done under the guidance of a guru, which will be discussed in the next verse.

 Verse 6

ato vicharah kartavyah, jijnasoratmavastunah |

samasadya dayasindhum, gurum brahmaviduttamam ||15||

Therefore, a true seeker of the Self should proceed with his inquiry after duly approaching a Master who is established in the experience of the Self and who is an ocean of compassion.

            In this verse Sri Sankara makes an important note that no one should conduct the scriptural enquiry by oneself as it may lead to misunderstanding of the scriptures. When the scriptures are studied from a guru then alone it will be effective for it will be then converted into liberating knowledge. Otherwise, it will end up in scholarship only.  So he should approach a guru who is stotriya and Brahmanishta i.e. who is well-versed in the sastras and is himself established in Brahman. When such a guru is approached with sraddah and devotion, he will teach, not for money or fame, but out of compassion to help the jijnasu disciple to achieve his goal of Self-liberation.

Verse 7 

adhikarinamasaste, phalasiddhirvisesatah |

upaya desakaladyah, santyasmin sahakarinah ||14|| 

Ultimate success in spiritual endeavours depends chiefly upon the qualifications of the seeker. Auxiliary conveniences such as time and place all have a place indeed, but they are essentially secondary.

In this verse Sri Sankara points out that if a student has to benefit from the teaching of a guru not only the guru is fully qualified but the student must also have a prepared mind and intellect, to absorb the teaching. It is like sowing the seed. The seed will be able to sprout and bear fruit in a well prepared soil only.  As the knowledge has to take place in the mind, the mind has to be ripe and ready to receive the teaching.  Time, place, service to the teacher and so on are no doubt important but they are only secondary and supportive factors that are only indirectly helpful.  Adhikari refers to a properly qualified, fit person.

Verse 8

sadhananyatra chatvari, kathithani manishibhih|

ayesu satsveva sannishṭa, yadhabhave na sidhyati ||18||

Great sages have spoken of four qualifications for attainment which, when present, (a sadhaka) succeeds in the realization of Brahman and in the absence of which (the four qualifications) the realization is not attained.

                The four qualifications, Sri Sankara talks about are the primary qualifications one needs for engaging in Self-inquiry; desakaladyah, time and place of enquiry he talked about in the previous verse being only supportive or secondary factors.  These four qualifications will be listed in the next verse.

Verse 9

adau nityanityavasthu-vivekah pariganyate |

ihamutraphalabhoga-viragastadanantaram ||

samadisatkasampattih, mumuksutvamiti sphutam ||19||

(While enumerating the qualifications), first we count the ability to discriminate between the Real and the unreal; next comes a spirit of detachment from the enjoyment of the fruits of actions here and hereafter; after that is the groups of six virtues beginning with mind control; and the last is undoubtedly an intense desire for liberation. 

The four essential qualifications are stated briefly.  They will be described in detail in ensuing verses:

1)    Viveka – Discrimination.  The discriminative understanding with reference to what is nitya, eternal or permanent, and anitya, time-bound or impermanent.

2)    Vairagya – Dispassion or detachment. Dispassion towards  the anitya vasthu-the objects and pleasures of this world and the other world as well.

3)    Six virtues – The six virtues starting from Sama, discipline of the mind. These will be enumerated later.

4)    Mumukshutva – the burning desire for Moksha

Swami Paramarthananda sums them up briefly as 4Ds; Discrimination, Dispassion, Discipline and Desire.

---------------------

Vivekachudamani – 1

 Select verses 1 to 3

Vivekachudamani is a popular prakarana grantha by Sri Aadhi Sankara, whom we shall refer to as Sri Sankara, that expounds Advaita Vedanta philosophy in detail.  A few western commentators like Alston and Comans have disputed the authorship of Vivekachudamani as ascribed to Sri Sankara in view of difference in style as compared to his commentaries on Prasthanatraya.  But there is a general agreement among many others that Vivekachudamani is an ancillary treatise of Sri Sankara addressed to different audience with a specific emphasis and purpose.  In this connection Swami Dayananda Saraswathy observes “―I do not think we lose anything even if the authorship is attributed to any other Sankaracharya of one of the various Sankara-mathas.“   For Vivekachudamani, meaning ‘the crest jewel of discrimination’, remains a vade mecum of quintessential Advaita Vedanta theory and practice.

This is a fairly big work of 580 verses of which 108 were selected by Swami Dayananda Saraswathi and Swami Paramarthananda for their talks.  My blogs on Vivekachudamani will be based on these selected verses only.  The verse no. in the original text is given along with the verse and verse no. in the selections is given before the verse.

The text opens with mangalacharanam, an auspicious invocation, for the sake of successful completion of this work.

Verse:1

sarvavedantasiddhanta-gocharam tamagocharam |

Govindam paramanandam, sadgurum pranato’smyaham ||1||

My salutations to Sat-Guru Govinda who is limitless and is of the nature of Bliss Supreme, who is beyond the reach of the known instruments of perception and who can be known only through the import of the essence of Vedanta

Here Govinda refers to Lord and also to Sri Sankara’s guru, Sri Govindapada.  So Sri Sankara is offering salutations to his guru as well as to the Lord seeking their blessings for the successful completion of the text. Further the real nature of guru, like that of the Lord, is Brahman only. And Brahman is infinite; cannot be objectified by the senses; can be known only through the study of the Upanishads and is of the nature of Sat, Chit, Aananda.

Verse:2

durlabhaṃ trayamevaitad, devanugrahahetukam |

manushyatvam, mumukshutvaṃ, mahapurushasamsrayah ||3||

Very rare indeed are these three things and happen only due to the utmost Grace of God—a human birth, a burning desire for liberation, and the blessed refuge of an illuminated sage.

Human beings only of all the creatures have the free will, which helps them to pursue all the four Purusharthas that includes Dharma and Moksha. So birth as a human being, Manushyatvam, is considered as a blessing of the Lord.  Of those born as human beings only few develop a burning desire for Moksha. This burning desire for Moksha is called Mumukshutvam and the one who has this desire is called a mumukshu. Moksha can be gained only through Self-knowledge and Self-knowledge can be acquired only through the study of scriptures under the proper guidance of an enlightened Guru who has the knowledge of the sastras as well. Such a Guru is called Mahapurusha in this verse. So this three-fold accomplishment of Manushyatvam, Mumukhutvam and the discipleship under a Mahapurusha, for a jiva is described as special blessings due to the Grace of the Lord.

Verse: 3

labdhva kathancinnarajanma durlabham,

tatrapi pumstvam srutiparadarsanam |

yassvatmamuktyai na yateta mudhadhih,

sa hyatmaha svam vinihantyasadgrahat ||4|| 

Is there a man who, having somehow obtained this rare human birth, together with masculine temperament and also a complete knowledge of the scriptures, is foolish enough not to strive hard for Self-realisation? One verily commits suicide, clinging to things unreal. 

In this verse Sri Sankara criticises the person, who with the advantages of human birth, a subtle intellect and academic scholarship in scriptures, does not strive for Self-realisation. Wasting the advantages that this person has got by not pursuing the fourth Purushartha of Moksha is akin to squandering the human birth. So Sri Sankara calls him a dull fool and compares his lack of enthusiasm to strive for Moksha, to committing suicide. Swami Chinmayananda comments “One can get a Doctorate in Foolishness if one does not utilize such a rare opportunity to make rapid spiritual progress.”   In this verse masculine temperament is to be interpreted as emotional strength or freedom from emotional complexes, a quality that will be of great help in practicing detachment, if he chooses to.

-----------------------