Our Body, Our Mind

(This is part of my notes from “Magical Mind, Magical body" of Dr. Deepak Chopra.) 

Good health is not mere absence of disease.  It is a state of positive wellbeing which includes emotional, psychological wellbeing besides physical wellbeing.  Our body is not a frozen sculpture fixed in space and time, a physical machine that has learnt to think. It is a river of information and energy and thought is a fluctuation of information and energy in the body.  Greek philosopher Heraclitus said “In a river, you cannot step into the same water twice.”   Every second of our experience, the body undergoes change.  With every breadth we take in 10²² atoms that end up as our cells. When we breathe out, we are breathing out bits and pieces of tissues and this we are exchanging with others in the planet.  That means we are exchanging our body with the body of the universe.  Isotope study reveals that we replace 98% of atoms in our body in one year.  We make a new liver once in six weeks, a new skeleton once in six months. Our body at the current moment is of 2014 model much different internally from 2004 model.  There is a deeper reality behind this changing body which does not undergo any change while the body continuously undergoes change. 

Our body is made of atoms and atoms are made up of subatomic particles like leptons, mesons etc. which are moving at lightning speed.  99% of our body is empty space and out of this empty space come these particles as in the space outside.  These particles are fluctuations of energy and information.  A quantum unit of electricity is electron, of light is photon and of gravity is graviton. Similarly a quantum unit of mind is thought.  A thought at basic level is an impulse of information. When we have a thought we make in our brain a set of chemicals called neuropeptides, neuro standing for nervous energy and peptides for protein-like molecules.  This is the means for brain cells communicating with one another.  When one brain cell wants to communicate with another brain cell, it manufactures the neuropeptides that latches on to the receptors in the other cell.

These receptors exist in other systems of the body like immune system.  That means immune system can think and also knows what goes on in our body all the time. When the body encounters bacteria, our immune system tries to figure it out and manufacture the antibody to counter it. The body can do a million things simultaneously and correlate them as well. So it is a thinking system. In other parts of the body like intestines and colon also we have cells that have receptors. That means they are also thinking systems and so our mind cannot be confined to the heart or brain alone. We have a thinking body that has mind all through the body. So our human body is body-mind at the same time.

Universe is a non-local field of energy and information with which this local field of information & energy called physical body is exchanging energy and information unconsciously continuously.  Our body’s biological rhythms, circadian rhythms, are in tune with earth’s rhythms, which in turn are affected by planetary movements.  Universe out there is a chaos of energy soup while the deeper reality behind the body and thought is a silent witness that does not change and is beyond Time and Space. The chaos of energy soup we take into our physical system through the five senses and inject a sense of reality to it unconsciously.  But our senses are not a true test of reality.  Because of our conditioned response, conditioning caused by socio economic conditions, belief and value systems, and upbringing etc., each one of us structure a certain type of physical reality. In complete silence of thought only, mano-nasa, we recognise we are not the thoughts but the one who is witness to the thoughts. The witness is the pure Consciousness, called Unified field.  Physical body, feelings, psychological makeup does not affect the Consciousness.

This quantum mechanical body is made up of particles like leptons, mesons etc. These particles are not material objects.  They give us the experience of matter through our senses but they are really fluctuations of energy in a void of energy and information.  99% of body is empty space, and this empty space is not an emptiness of nothing but fullness of non-material intelligence that is responsible for the material expression of body and mind.  The field of non-material intelligence is called Unified Field or Morpho-genetic Field by scientists.  Morpho-genetic means that which gives rise to form, give birth to the variety and diversity that the body is. The essential I,the 'I', is not the body or mind but its source, the non-material intelligence.  As it is not matter the 'I',is not subject to the laws of matter, which are valid only in a field of time, space and causation.  ‘I’ is basically Consciousness which conceives, constructs and governs the body.  That means 'We' are not physical machines that have learnt how to think, but the impulses of intelligence that have learnt how to create physical machines and thoughts are impulses of intelligence.  'We' are the quantum events in that Field which has learnt how to create both the mind and the body.

We are shifting to a new paradigm not only of the body but also of the interpretation of the world. The old paradigm said that there is an objective world outside which is completely independent of the perceiver. The new paradigm says we live in a participatory world where as observer we create that outside world.  The old paradigm says world consists of clumps of matter separated by time and space.  The new paradigm says that world is non-material and is composed of energy fields that come from one underlying unmanifest Field. The old paradigm says mind and matter are independent and separate entities.  The new paradigm says mind and matter are the same.  The Field experienced subjectively is mind; experienced objectively is material objects.  The old paradigm said the mind is trapped in brain and intelligence is localized in the nervous system or in the body.  The new paradigm says mind is unbounded and infinite, though it finds expression in localized forms and phenomenon. The old paradigm said Consciousness is epiphenomenon of matter.  The new paradigm says matter is epiphenomenon of Consciousness.  The old paradigm said human beings are self-contained independent entities.  The new paradigm says they are only focal points of intelligence in the Field.  The old paradigm said perception is an automatic phenomenon.  The new paradigm says we learn how to interpret and that brings about perceptual changes.  And today we are moving into a new era where there is a shift in perception.

(As audio-book this is available at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23TtddwIWeg)

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Silence – the Real Self

Silence can be of body, speech or mind.  As physical silence is called stillness, we generally associate silence with speech or mind.  Of these the popular association is with speech. Silence of speech is practised more as a vrata, mouna vrata.  In mouna vrata also, one keeps the mouth shut but does not stay still and the mind also keeps its chattering and wandering. The silence, I am referring to is the silence of the mind, the inner stillness, which is also referred to as mano-nasa, the destruction of the mind.  Here the mind is not destroyed but only quietened with the thought process of the mind arrested. This state can be achieved only when there is total silence, silence of body, mind and speech.

Our mind being a product of the satva component of the pancha bhuthas i.e. space, air, fire, earth and water, which by themselves are insentient, is also insentient by itself.  It is made sentient by the pure Consciousness, called Chaitanyam that the mind manifests through its reflection in the mind, called Chidabasa. So in every thought experience called Vritti, Chaitanyam is associated.  One Chaitanyam associated with numerous thoughts is symbolically represented as Rasa Krida.  Krida stands for the coming and going of thoughts and Rasa stands for Anandha, that is Chaitanyam, which is Sat, Chit, Anandha. Rasa Krida is the figurative interplay of thoughts with Chaitanyam, which is one and changeless.  Normally we are experiencing Chaitanyam with Vritti in all our thought experiences. When the mind is silent, it is thought free and we are experiencing the Chaitanyam only and so the peace and happiness experienced in the moment of inner stillness is the peace and happiness associated with Chaitanyam. 

In Kenopanishad this is explained beautifully by the fit student first and later the guru explains it to the mediocre student. In the second verse of chapter 2, the student states as a reply to guru’s question, “I do not think, ’I know It well’, Not that I do not know; I know too.”  The student cannot know it well because Chaitanyam cannot be known as an object or as a concept.  But at the same time he cannot also say he does not know because it is part of his thought experiences. Thereafter the teacher explains this to the mediocre student in Mantra 4, with the oft-quoted statement. “प्रतिबोधविदितं मतम्”.

Here the teacher again explains to the mediocre student that Chaitanyam is associated with every thought modification of the mind.  Every experience we have has a variable component, thought and a non-variable component, Chaitanyam, the pure consciousness principle. One registers only the thought and not the Chaitanyam. To see an object one not only needs good eyes but also a source of light to illumine the object.  For even if one has good vision, one cannot see the object if there is no light and it is totally dark. But when we see an object, our mind registers the object only and not the light pervading it which makes it possible for us to see the object.  This you can experiment, while walking in the daytime.  The mind registers the objects only and not the sunlight that makes it possible for us to see the objects.  Even if there is nothing to notice, the emptiness also is revealed by the light only. In the same way not only the thought but also absence of thought is revealed by Chaitanyam. So in the moment of inner stillness, when thought is absent we have the experience of the revealing Chaitanyam and this explains the deep peace and serene happiness enjoyed at the time of inner stillness.

When mind is silent there is total silence i.e. silence of body and speech as well. And the inner stillness experienced then is the experience of Chaitanyam, which is our Real Self. This is conveyed by Mandukya Upanishad as well  through Mantras 7 and 12. Mantra 7 describes Turiyam, which is Athma and Mantra 12 describes Amatra, the state of silence, and both have identical descriptions. For as we have seen earlier, it is Chaitanyam that illuminates the chatter of mind as well as the silence of mind.  So this inner stillness is Athma that is Brahman, the Cosmic Supreme.   So if you meditate on ‘Om Namasivaya’ or on ‘Om Namo Narayana” or some similar Mantra, slowly spelling out the words mentally, concentrating on the silence in between words and lengthening the period of silence as meditation progresses, then you are  meditating  on Silence, your inner Real Self. 

This is the concept Wayne Dyer employs in his Gap Meditation, through which he says one can have conscious contact with God.  This inner stillness, Eckhart Tolle equates with ‘Now’, the container; the events that take place at any time being only the contents. So in his book “Stillness Speaks”, Eckhart Tolle states “When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself ----- This is the I Am that is deeper than name and form.  Stillness is your essential nature” and goes on to equate the stillness with Awareness which is Chaitanyam. From this we can see that what Lord Dakshinamurthy does, is not teaching in silence but teaching ‘Silence’, that is one’s Real Self.

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Iswara’s Grace

Sri Krishna says in Gita (9-29) “समोऽहं सर्वभूतेषु न मे द्वेष्योस्ति न प्रियः”। (Samoham sarva bhutheshu na may dweshyosthi na priyaha)  I am same to all beings; there is none hateful or dear to me.  This declaration He makes not as the son of Devaki but as Paramathma, whom we shall refer to as Iswara.  But we feel in practice some seem to be recipients more of Iswara’s Grace or Iswara Kripa or Anugraha than others.  What is the yardstick to qualify for the special Grace, one may wonder. I want to analyse it in this blog in the light of other statements Sri Krishna makes in the same chapter.

As Sri Krishna says ‘I am same to all’, He does not choose anybody to shower special Grace; rather He showers His Grace equally on all.  It is only we through our actions need qualify ourselves to take advantage of His Grace.  Acharya Sankara  illustrates this through an example.  In winter people light a fire and sit around it.  The fire gives the same warmth to all, but the one who sits near it seems to receive more warmth than the ones sitting a bit far off.  Swami Paramarthananda gives an example from current scenario. Solar energy flows same to all, but the one who has erected a solar panel gets the benefit of electricity from it to escape power-cut.  The one who has attained a higher degree of mental purity, through selfless prayer, worship and actions done in karmayoga spirit makes oneself eligible to take advantage of the Grace like the farmer who has tilled the land and sowed the seeds beforehand, gets greater benefit from the rains and reaps a good harvest as compared to the one who has neglected the field and let the water go waste.  This Sri Krishna himself states in the second line of the above quoted verse: ये भजन्ति तु मां भक्त्या मयि ते तेषु चाप्यहं॥ (Ye bhajanthi tum am bhakthya mayi te teshu chapyaham) But those who worship me devoutly, abide in Me and I too am in them. This means that more you get closer to Him the more you feel His nearness to you.

Now the question is “How to get closer to Him?  Does it need special sadhanas like Vrata, Upasana, Yagna or a special Puja somewhere?”  Sri Krishna Himself has given the solution earlier in the same chapter in verse 29.

यत्करोषि यदश्नासि यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत् । (Yatkaroshi  yadasnasi yajjuhoshi dadasi yat) 

यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम् ॥ (Yattapasyasi Kaunteya tatkurushva madarpanam)

Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice, whatever you give in charity, whatever you do by way of penance,O son of Kunti, do that as an offering unto Me.  

This attitude converts the very life itself of bhaktha as a worship of Iswara.  There is no division as secular and religious work, as all work is treated as worship, being an offering to Iswara. With such an attitude one will not stray from the path of dharma; rather he will give up any bad or immoral habits, acquired earlier.  Sri Girish Chandra ghosh, a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was a good dramatist but also a great drunkard.  When he confessed his inability to give up drinks, Sri Ramakrishna asked him only to offer every glass of drink to him before taking it. Gosh did accordingly but could do so only for one day and from the second day onwards, he could not bring himself to offer the drinks to his master and so gave up the habit of drinks itself.  When one invokes God in all of one’s actions sincerely, one acquires selflessness in actions. As God comes more in one’s life, the less the play of ego in one’s life, as what is ego but edging god out and replacing it with ‘I’. 

Sri Krishna goes on to list a few actions, the first among them being food.  The food we take has a great impact on our thoughts.   The more satvic the food the more satvic tends to be our mind.  In Chandogya Upanishad Sanatkumara tells Narada “आहारशद्धौ सत्वशुद्धिः” (Aahara suddhau satva suddhihi) When nourishment is pure, thought processes of the mind also become pure.  When one performs religious acts or sadhanas offering them to Iswara, he eschews selfish motive in performance.  As one gives everything with the mindset that he is giving to none other than Iswara, he cultivates humility and eschews arrogance that comes from a feeling of superiority as giver.

Such a virtuous, selfless, egoless action done with humility and with dedication to Iswara earns one Punya, good karma-phala.  Swami Paramarthananda in his lecture on God’s Grace observes that God's Grace is only another name for the ripe Punya-phala that becomes ready for tapping, because God as karma-phala dhata has no preferences and only acts as per the law of karma laid down by Himself to regulate our lives.  When the accrued Punya becomes ripe for tapping is not within one’s knowledge.  So when one enjoys the benefit of ripe punya-phala it looks as though one is enjoying special Grace.  So if one wants the favour of special Grace let him through righteous, selfless, egoless actions performed with humility and devotion, earn the Punya-phala and make oneself  eligible to receive the Punya-phala as His Grace, which may be then or later, depending upon when it becomes ripe and ready for tapping.

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Shadanga Yoga

(adapted from Swami Paramarthananda’s talk “Ashtanga Yoga”)

Ashtanga yoga of Patanjali Maharishi consists of eight limbs:
1)    Yama - the five restraints or the "don'ts"

1)  Ahimsa - Non-violence,

2)  Sathyam – Truthfulness and avoidance of telling untruth

3)   Brahmacharyam - Celibacy and avoidance of indecent and inappropriate attitude towards other sex.

4)  Asteyam - Non-stealing

5)  Aparigraha - Non-covetousness and not having a feeling of possessiveness.

2)    Niyama - the five observances or the "do's"

1)    Saucham - Purity, cleanliness

2)   Santoshaha - Contentment

3)   Tapas - Austerity

4)    Swadhyaya - Self-study, study of scriptures

5)    Ishwara Pranidhanam - Surrender to God's will

3)    Asana -  Steady physical posture

4)    Pranayama - Control of prana or life force

5)    Pratyahara -  Withdrawal of the senses

6)    Dharana  -  Concentration

7)    Dhyanam -   Meditation

8)    Samadhi – Total absorption in meditation.

Of these 5 don’ts of Yama, and 5 do’s of Niyama, had been the subject of an earlier lecture of Swami Paramarthananda, or Swamiji in short, under the title “Ten commandments of Hinduism”.  The other six, namely asana, pranayama, pratyahra, dharana, dhyana and samadhi, are the subject of the present lecture under the caption ‘Shadanga yoga”, the yoga with six limbs. In an earlier lecture, Swamiji has discussed ‘What is yoga?’  In the present talk he briefly recalled some points from his earlier talk, as a prelude to the present discourse, that is given in next para.

Yoga is derived from the word ‘Yuj’, that means union, merger.  As per scriptures it is the union between Jivathma, individual self, and Paramathma, the cosmic self.  This Ikyam, called Moksham, is also called parama purushartha, Supreme goal of life.  After initially speaking about Ikyam, scriptures later point out that union is not  necessary as Jivathma and Parmathma are one only and only upadhis are different and upadhis give an appearance of separation.  Jiva in his delusion labours under the notion that Jivathma is different from Paramatma and seeks union with Paramatma. The scriptures talk of this union (yoga) also as separation (viyoga) from our delusion that Jivathma and Paramathma are different and the notions that arise out of the delusion of separation.  Removal of this notional division through Jnanam is called Jivathma Paramatma Ikyam. So, this Ikyam is called Sadhya Yoga as it is the ultimate goal of life and all the other yogas that lead to this Ikya Jnanam, are called Sadhana yogas.

Patanjali Maharishi propounded this ashtanga yoga in his Yoga sutras.  This has two parts: 1) philosophy called yoga dharsan and 2) a scheme of spiritual disciplines i.e. ashtanga yoga called yoga sadhanas.  Yoga dharsan, which talks of the existence of Iswara as supreme Purusha and spells out the aim of Yoga  as fusion or merger of individual soul with the supreme Soul is not acceptable to advaita vedantists but yoga sadhana is accepted as a means of controlling and focussing the mind and internalising the Brahma Jnanam gained through Sravanam and consolidated and made doubt-free through Mananam.  

Patanjali Maharishi defines Yoga as चित्तवृत्तिनिरोधः,chitta vritti nirodaha,blocking mental vrittis, which is interpreted as regulating the mental functions, curbing involuntary thoughts and making all thought patterns satvic.  Our mind is a powerful internal organ.  Its greatness is that it is a main instrument we have for achieving all purusharthams. It is associated with the activities of all organs. And it is also a primary instrument as well, for through its thoughts it can shape one’s attitude and make hell out of heaven or heaven out of hell. That is why chitta suddhi, purity of mind, is insisted in all sadhanas.  Yama and Niyama help in attaining chitta suddhi.  But our mind has involuntary thoughts as well where thoughts happen on their own, besides voluntary thoughts which are deliberate and under our control and in a pure mind only voluntary thoughts become pure and satvic.  Special efforts are required to keep the involuntary thoughts in check and also pure and satvic.  If not, the involuntary thoughts can proliferate and cause emotional disturbances like stress, depression, anxiety etc. that will be an obstacle to progress in spiritual sadhana.  Shadanga yoga helps one to address this problem, retrieving the mind from the hold of involuntary thoughts and bringing back the mind under sadhaka’s control.

Asana is taking up a steady and comfortable physical posture that consciously relaxes the body makes It supple and flexible, balancing the different nerve impulses.  A healthy body facilitates having a healthy mind that can be groomed to bear the opposites like pain and pleasure, heat and cold with equanimity.  Pranayama involves regulation of breadth. Talking about Prana and mind, Ramana Maharishi in Upadesa saar states: शाखयोः द्वयि शक्तिमूलका sakhayoh dvayi sakthimoolaka, two branches stemming from the same power. So you control mind through control of Prana.  Asanas and Pranayama together help in owning up the mind and snatching it, as it were, from the grip of involuntary thoughts.

Pratyahara is the next step where the mind is kept under one’s control denying involuntary thoughts their food by turning the focus of sense organs inwards.  This is what Sri Krishna states as one of stithaprajna lakshnas in Gita (2-58)  

यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव शर्वशः।  Yada samharathe chaayam kurmonganeeva sarvasaha  
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्टिता॥ Indriyaneendriyarthebhyah tasya prajna prathishititha                 
When he withdraws his senses from the sense objects like a tortoise, which draws in its limbs from all directions, his mind is stable. 

Dharana is the next step where the mind is given a job like Japa or chanting a prayer slowly with awareness to keep it voluntarily engaged and to maintain control so that it may not stray away into involuntary thoughts. In Dharana concentration is tried to be maintained for five to ten minutes only.  Dhyanam is simply an extension of Dharana, where one is able to maintain a smooth unfluctuating control over the mind not letting it stray into involuntary thoughts for quite a length of time.  Vedantic dhyanam is on one of the Mahavakhyas.  The increased attention span one is able to attain, leads one gradually to the total absorption stage of Samadhi in course of time with constant regular practice and in Samadhi one effortlessly moves into Dhyanam at will and stays for a length of time.  Where effort is involved in doing Dhyanam, Samadhi is attained without effort, at will.  Whereas increase in attention span is achieved in Dhyanam, depth in attention is attained in Samadhi.  When one is conscious of one’s surroundings in Samadhi time, it is called Savikalpa Samadhi. The stage of total absorption where even the triputi of meditator, object of meditation and the process of meditation is also not there in mind, making one appear as dead to one’s environs, is called Nirvikalpa Samadhi. This is the highest state to which all these sadhanas should lead to.  These eight steps are so designed as to gradually lead a spiritual sadhaka to the Nirvikalpa Samadhi.  People like Sri Ramana Maharishi are exceptions who could go to this stage straightaway due to their purva janma vasana aided by divine grace and they cannot be taken as models by spiritual aspirants.

A spiritual aspirant should make a strong resolve, Sankalpa, to reduce the involuntary thoughts.  This can be done through a three-fold strategy -1) resolve firmly and renew the resolve every morning after getting up, 2) alertness during the waking hours by doing all actions consciously and 3) review every night before retiring - aimed at reducing the frequency, intensity and resilience of involuntary thoughts.   Doing action consciously means keeping the mind focused in the action one is doing and such a focused life is called alert life. When one acts consciously, the efficiency and efficacy of the action also increases, besides arresting the mind-wandering which is the cause for involuntary thoughts.  These steps besides Shadanga yoga will help one to win the war over involuntary thoughts, which is necessary to get established in the Ikya Jnanam and mature as Brahma Nishta.

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Swami Vivekananda and Modern Physics

Swami Vivekananda was not only a monk of great sastraic erudition, a magnificent orator with an imposing appearance endowed with a keen, incisive mind and an incredible memory,  but also a great scholar in science.  It is his ability to interpret Vedic Science with the idioms of Modern Science that endeared him to the west and made them appreciate the great scientific truths enshrined in the Vedas.   We shall briefly see his vision in Modern Physics.  (I will be hereafter referring to Swami Vivekananda as Swamiji only.)

Science of Swamiji’s day swore by positivism, which refused to accept anything that was not verifiable by senses or experiments.  Swamiji stressed there is also place for intuitionism in quest of science for ultimate truth quoting the Vedas, where the rishis in their search for Truth turned inwards their thoughts and arrived at profound scientific conclusions.  He pointed out “The senses cheat you day and night.  Vedanta found that ages ago; Modern science is just discovering the same fact” (7,74)  He said that intuition is the natural culmination of reason. On instinct, reason and intuition, he said, “Reason is the vehicle one rides to reach a certain point beyond which one cannot move. Intuition goes beyond reason but reason with unbiased mind is the only guide to reach there. Instinct is like ice, reason is like water and intuition is the subtlest form like vapor and each one follows the other”.  Today, with the developments in particle physics which deals with sub-atomic particles like quarks and leptons that are only inferred and still not isolated to be studied separately and the vindication of uncertainty theory of Heisenberg, the limitations of experimental physics and positivism are exposed.  Einstein who started as a strong votary of positivism later declared, “In a certain sense, therefore, I hold it true that pure thought can grasp reality as the ancients dreamed”. 

Physics of Swamiji’s time is now called classical physics as compared to the present day’s Modern Physics.  In classical physics mass, energy, space and time were all considered independent entities.  Swamiji with his Vedantic knowledge declared that these four are not only inter-related but also that energy and matter are interchangeable in the space and time domains.  In the Raja Yoga lecture Swamiji  delivered in New York, he explained the oneness of matter and energy by defining them as Akasa and Prana, that are produced from the Universal mind, Mahat, using Sankhyan terminology.  All forces are expressions of one single force, Prana; and all matters are derived from one basic matter, Akasa and both come from Mahat, which itself  is a projection of Absolute, he declared.  Nicholas Tesla, the famous U.S. electrical engineer and inventor, was greatly impressed with the idea and later had discussions with Swamiji.   Swamiji later wrote to an English friend, “Mr. Tesla thinks he can demonstrate mathematically that force and matter are reducible to potential energy. I am to go and see him next week, to get this new mathematical demonstration”(5,77).  In this letter Swamiji has used the terms force and matter for energy and mass.  Tesla did not succeed and only ten years later Einstein came with the equation E=mc², to demonstrate the oneness of mass and energy.  It is to be noted here that after meeting Swamiji, Tesla who was struck by the resemblance between the Sankhya theory of matter and energy and that of modern physics, took great interest in Eastern Science and even started using the words Akasa and Prana for matter and energy.  Swamiji  later remarked during a lecture in India, "I myself have been told by some of the best scientific minds of the day, how wonderfully rational the conclusions of the Vedanta are. I know of one of them personally, who scarcely has time to eat his meal, or go out of his laboratory, but who would stand by the hour to attend my lectures on the Vedanta; for, as he expresses it, they are so scientific, they so exactly harmonize with the aspirations of the age and with the conclusions”

Regarding time,space and causation, let me quote Swamiji's words as expressed in the lecture in London in 1896. "The one peculiar attribute we find in time, space, and causation is that they cannot exist separate from other things. Try to think of space without colour, or limits, or any connection with the things around-just abstract space. You cannot; you have to think of it as the space between two limits or between three objects.  It has to be connected with some object to have any existence.  So with time; you cannot have any idea of abstract time, but you have to take two events, one preceding and the other succeeding, and join the two events by the idea of succession.  Time depends on two events, just as space has to be related to outside objects.  And the idea of causation is inseparable from time and space.  This is the peculiar thing about them having no independent existence.------ They have no real existence; yet they are not non-existent, seeing that through them all things are manifesting as this universe.  Thus we see that the combination of time, space, and causation has neither existence nor non-existence.-----This is Maya".  These words regarding time, space, and causation were revolutionary then but now with the theory of relativity and studies in particle physics, it is a common knowledge in science circles that there is no absolute time, space or causation.  Michael Talbot in his book ‘Mysticism and New Physics”  says ”Vivekananda further expresses a view that has become the backbone of the quantum theory.  There is no such thing as causality”

"Science is nothing but the finding of unity.  As soon as science would reach perfect unity, it would stop from further progress, because it would reach the goal" declared Swamiji in the paper on Hinduism he submitted in the Parliament of Religions in 1893.  This “unity” is expressed in Vedanta through the Mahavakya “Tat Tvam Asi” (Thou art That) which can be expressed as an equation Athma=Brahman, that can be interpreted as the identification of macrocosm and microcosm.  Swamiji referred to this unity with these words, “Though an atom is invisible, unthinkable, yet in it are the whole power and potency of the Universe.  This is exactly what the Vedantists say of Athma”(7,50);  “Man is the most representative being in the universe, the microcosm, a small universe in himself”(4,49).  The unity that Swamiji envisioned is now the goal of scientists can be seen from the Nobel laureate Dr. David Bohm’s words in his book “Wholeness and the Implicate order”; “science itself is demanding a new, non-fragmentary world view, in the sense that the present approach of analysis of the world into independently existent parts does not work very well in modern physics. It is shown that both in relativity theory and quantum theory, notions implying the undivided wholeness of the universe would provide a much more orderly way of considering the general nature of reality.”

Swamiji called Newton and Galileo 'Prophets of physical science’ and Upanishadic Rishis ‘Prophets of spirituality’ and declared that “the whole universe, mental and material, will be fused into one”(6,4). He prophesied the convergence of modern science with the Advaita Vedanta and the consequent spiritualization of religion and civilisation when he declared in Harvard in 1895, "Civilization is the manifestation of divinity in man".  No wonder A.D.Reincourt observed in his book 'The eye of Shiva',"From its modern awakening with Sri Ramakrishna  and Swami Vivekananda, Eastern mysticism has begun to adapt its revelations to the entirely different cultural framework provided by science and technology, without in any way sacrificing what is valid in its traditional understanding of the phenomenon itself ----Indian mysticism has evolved as the science of physics itself".

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Practical Vedanta of Swami Vivekananda

Let us first see briefly about Vedanta, the philosophy of the Upanishads.  Hindus, in spite of their differences in rituals, forms of worship and philosophical doctrines have a common factor i.e. their allegiance to Vedas, which is believed to be eternal and revealed by God to a few Rishis who could divine it through their refined mind.  The Upanishads generally form the end portion of Vedas and contain the theological truths revealed by the Vedas.  The philosophy expounded in the Upanishads is  known as Vedanta and this term can be interpreted as 1) the end and goal of Vedas or 2)  the essence of the Vedas and also as 3) the end portion of Vedas.  Speaking of Upanishads, Swami Vivekananda says, “Bold, brave, beyond the conception of the present day, stand the giant minds of the sages of Upanishads, declaring the noblest truths that have ever been preached to humanity, without any compromise, without any fear.....Truly it has been said of the Upanishads by Ramanuja that they form the head, shoulders, the crest of the Vedas” (Lahore address,1897) ). (Hereafter  volume no. and the page no. of collected works only will be given in brackets, when quoting Swami Vivekananda). 

The term Vedanta also denotes the major group of surviving schools of  Hindu philosophy, Dvaita, Visishtadvaita and Advaita, although by usage this term denotes Advaita Vedanta only now.   In expounding his philosophy of practical Vedanta, Swami Vivekananada, enunciated that these three are not contradictory systems though Dvaita, Visihtadvaita and Advaita differ in their interpretation of Upanishads in defining God, Universe and individual and their relationship to each other.  He stated that in the three systems there is the gradual working up of human mind towards higher and higher ideals till everything is merged in the wonderful unity which is reached in the Advaita system, the unity of everything in and as Brahman and Brahman as and in everything.  He pointed out that one system is based on another and there is gradual unfolding of the theme. It is like advancing from truth to greater truth to ultimate truth.  “The old idea was to develop one at the expense of all the rest.  The modern way is harmonious development. ---- He who gets the whole must have the parts too.  Dualism is included in Advaitism” (7,87)”  He attempted to make Advaita not the preserve of scholars and pundits but acceptable to material West, and understandable to common people of India without compromising its core principle. This view he expressed in his letter to Alasinga Perumal of Chennai, where he wrote” The dry abstract Advaita must become living-poetic- in everyday life: out of hopelessly intricate mythology must come concrete moral forms: and out of bewildering yogi-ism must come the most scientific and practical psychology – and all this must be put in a form so that a child may grasp it. That is my Life’s work”. (5,104).  He could do it as he had the “head of Sankara and heart of Buddha”.  Without devaluing the other two systems, he tried to re-state and re-interpret the Advaita Vedanta of Acharya Sankara with modern idioms, to meet modern challenges keeping in mind the great saying of Vedas “एकं सत् विप्रा बहुधा वदन्ति” – Ekam Sat Viprah Bahudah Vadhanthi(The Truth is one, wise men call it differently).

Acharya Sankara summed up Advaita philosophy as “Brahma Satyam, Jagan Mithya, Jivo Brahmaiva na apara”-Brahman only is real, Universe is only mithya, apparently real, Individual’s Athma is not different from Brahman”.  Swami Vivekananda in his interpretation, gave more emphasis to the part that individual’s Athma is same as Brahman, Jiva-Brahma ikyam, to emphasise the divinity of each individual soul, Athma, with no emphasis on the part about the mithyatvam of the Universe.  He wanted the wisdom of Upanishads to be no more the Rahasya, kept screened from the weak downtrodden masses of India who were in the grip of superstitions, in the name of religion and resigned to their miserable lot conditioned by centuries of social taboos.  So wherever he talked he made it a point to emphasise their divinity, reminding people of Upanishad calling them “Amrtasya  putrah”, heirs to immortal bliss.  He wanted the people to develop “muscles of steel and nerves of iron” to meet the challenges of life and to banish fear from their hearts.  A few quotations from his speeches, to this end I am giving below:

Religion is the manifestation of divinity already exist­ing in man.(3.482).

Superstition is a great enemy of man.(1.15).

Man stands on the glory of his own soul, the infinite, the eternal, the deathless—that soul which no instru­ments can pierce, which no air can dry, no fire burn, no water melt, the infinite, the birthless, the deathless, with­out beginning and without end, … before whose glory space melts away into nothingness and time vanishes into non-existence. This glorious soul we must believe in. Out of that will come power. (3.130) 

 We want Shraddha, we want faith in our own selves. Strength is life, weakness is death. ‘We are the Atman, deathless and free; pure, pure by nature. Can we ever commit any sin? Impossible!’—such a faith is needed. Such a faith makes men of us, makes gods of us. It is by losing this idea of Shraddha that the country has gone to ruin. (5.332)

The conceptions of Vedanta must come out, must remain not only in the forest, not only in the cave, but they must come out to work at the bar and the bench, in the pulpit, and in the cottage of the poor man, with the fishermen that are catching fish, and with the students that are studying. … If the fisherman thinks that he is the Spirit, he will be a better fisherman; if the student thinks that he is the Spirit, he will be a better student. If the lawyer thinks that he is the Spirit, he will be a better lawyer, and so on. (3.245).

When talking about Brahman as the only Reality, he emphasised also the oneness of all with Brahman.  So the Universe being one with Brahman is also Real, as it is pervaded by Brahman.  The Universe is only apparently real, when you see it as different from Brahman.  For him Brahman is the noumenon, the unchangeable and Universe is the phenomenon, the changeable.  Swami Vivekananda states that the Vedanta does not in reality denounce the world. What it seeks to teach is the deification of the world and not its annihilation - giving up the world as we ordinarily think of it, as it appears to us and to know what it really is. He stated that world is to be deified quoting the opening mantra of  Isavasyopanishad which says "ईशा वास्यमिदगं सर्वं यत्किञ्च जगत्यां जगत् “ (Isavasyam idam sarvam yat kim ca jagatyam jagat) - All this, whatsoever moves on the earth, should be covered by the Lord." He amplified this idea when he stated:  “The central ideal of Vedanta is oneness. There are no two in anything, no two lives. There is but one life, one world, one existence. Everything is that One, the difference is in degree and not in kind. It is the same life that pulsates through all beings, from Brahman to the amoeba, the difference is only in the degree of manifestation. We must not look down with contempt on others (2,299)”.   And in emphasising all is Brahman, he also tried to emphasise the unity of personal God, Iswara and Impersonal God, Brahman calling the latter Absolute and the former relative.  He felt all the views of Brahman being based on genuine spiritual experience of the Acharyas should be accepted as true of Brahman, the Ultimate Reality.

The same harmonious approach he adopted in defining the paths to reach the goal of Realisation of one’s True Self.  For him, each one of the yogas, karma yoga, bhakthi yoga, raja yoga and jnana yoga  is capable of serving as direct means for the attainment of  Moksha.  In support he quotes Gita where Sri Krishna’s talks about karma, dhyana, Bhakthi and jnana and also talks of yoga buddhi in their performance to reach Him.  Yoga buddhi is the intense desire seeking union with God.  He also defined Maya not as illusion but as a triad of space, time and causation, which are only ideas or concepts in our mind and has no place in Brahman.   Swami Vivekananda himself gave a  capsule summary of his practical Vedanta philosophy in one of his speeches as: “Each soul is potentially divine. The goal is to mani­fest this divinity within by controlling nature, external and internal. Do this either by work, or worship, or psychic control, or philosophy—by one, or more, or all of these and be free. This is the whole of religion. Doctrines or dogmas, or rituals, or books, or temples, or forms, are but secondary details.” (1.257). This incorporates the harmony and humanism he always emphasised along with the essence of Upanishads as revealed in the Mahavakhyas like “तत् त्वं असि Tat Tvam Asi” (you are that only) spelling out Jiva-Brahma-Ikyam.

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