Author Archives: Bimal Prasad

ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 5

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Part 4
6.9.1 to 6.9.4 and 6.10.1 to 6.10.3
During sleep, mind is resolved and jiva’s individuality is suspended and therefore he does not know his merger with Brahman during sleep.  Bees collect juices from different flowers and make honey by mixing the juices. In the honey, there is no trace of individual juice. Eastern and western rivers flowing towards east and west respectively merge in ocean and lose their individuality. Similarly, during sleep, at the time of death, and dissolution of a cycle of creation, all the creatures lose their individuality, and they resolve in Brahman. During sleep, the karmAs are in potential form. On becoming awake, they become live and functional. Hence going to sleep does not mean moksha. There are two types of entry of an individual into pure Being:  involuntary and voluntary. In deep sleep, one’s entry is involuntary.  There is no knowledge of the entry, and it is not permanent, and one comes back from that state.

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BrihadAranyaka Upanishad (Part 2)

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Part 1

Part 3

1.4.7
The mantra has core teaching of Vedanta, namely, Brahman is satya, jagat is mithya, and jiva is not different from Brahman. Brahman is all-pervading pure existence. Pure existence is same as pure consciousness. Existence and consciousness are two aspects of Brahman. It is eternal and changeless. It has mAyA power which is a relative reality because it borrows existence from Brahman. MAyA is the aggregate of sanchit karmAs of all the jivAs at the end of one cycle of creation which rests in Brahman in unmanifest and potential form. At appropriate time, the world is projected due to mAyA power. The creation unfolds in stages starting from five elements in nascent forms. The undifferentiated Brahman appears as differentiated names and forms called world. At some stage, jivAs with gross and subtle bodies are created which are inert and they enclose the all-pervading consciousness. It is like a pot enclosing space. The enclosed consciousness is jivAtma. This phenomenon is figuratively described as entry of Brahman. It is like a waking man entering the dream. When the dream is over, the waking man says that he has experienced the dream. It means that the entity which experiences the waking state also experiences the dream.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 4

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Part 3

Part 5

6.8.1 to 6.8.7
In deep sleep, the mind and sense organs resolve and the jiva resolves into pure existence. Sleep is called svapiti. The etymological meaning of the term svapiti is ‘one goes’, or ‘reaches’ sva, i.e., the self. The word sva connotes one’s own being or essential nature. One is absorbed in oneself in sleep. There is no individuality. Though the mind and sense organs are resolved, jiva continues to exist because there is prana, i.e., life. A clay pot resolves into clay. The clay is the nature of pot. The true nature of an entity is the locus of its resolution.

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Ghunghat ka pat khol re-Vedantic message

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Introduction                                                                                                                 Kabirdas was an Indian mystic who lived in north India in 14th Century. He was a devotee of Nirguna God. There are many spiritual songs (bhajans) in Hindi to his credit containing profound messages. He was of the firm view that without purity of mind, there cannot be spiritual upliftment. An impure mind leads to hypocrisy. Through his bhajans, he criticized hypocrites in a satirical manner. Dennis had a posted my article: ‘Chaki- a Vedantic Perspective’ in 2018. It was based on a bhajan of Kabir. Now is presented another bhajan: ‘Ghunghat ka pat khol re’ and its Vedantic message

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BrihadarAnyaka Upanishad (Part 1)

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Part2

Introduction
It belongs to Yajur Veda. Brih means big in volume and teaching. Aranyaka means forest. One meaning of Upanishad is destroyer of darkness, i.e., ignorance. It has 6 chapters (adhyaya) divided into 47 sections called BrAhmana containing 434 mantrAs. There is another division. Chapters 1 and 2 together is  madhu khanda or updesha khanda as it is akin to sravan. Chapters 3 and 4 together is muni khanda because yajnavalkya muni is the teacher. It is also called upapati khanda because it provides logic to the teaching. Upapati means reason. 5th and 6th Chapters together is khila khanda having miscellaneous topics. Khila means assortment. Many mantrAs, especially in chapters 5 and 6, talk about meditations and do not have Vedantic teaching. There is a meditation on bodily illness so as to practice austerity for voluntary practice of austerity is difficult.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Ch 6 to 8) Part 3

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Part 2

Part 4

6.5.1 to 6.5.4
The teacher asks the student to pay attention to what he is about to say. The mind is essentially formed of food; the prana is essentially formed of water and speech is essentially formed of fire. The Upanishad captures the state of mind of the student who says, “It is very difficult for me to understand all these things. Please clarify this a little more. That I am made up of the three elements and that I have nothing in me of my own are unheard of. This is strange indeed. It looks as if I cannot exist at all independently. I am ‘somebody else’. Unbelievable! Please explain further.” “Yes, I shall tell you, in detail, dear boy. Listen attentively.”

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Chandogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 2

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 Part 1

Part 3

6.2.1 to 6.2.4
In order to show that by knowing the supreme entity, all other things are known, creation’s evolution on the basis of the principle of cause and effect is taught. Different Upanishads describe creation in different manners. However, there is a consensus about a causeless creator from which creation has evolved according to the cause-and-effect principle. According to ShankarAcharya, creation is a necessary assumption for the purpose of the ascent of the individual to the Absolute. It may be there, or it may not be there; that is not the point. As an interim measure, creation is accepted and once it serves the purpose, it is negated. ‘x’ in an arithmetical equation does not really exist yet it is useful in solving the problem. When it solves the problem, it extinguishes itself automatically and is not there. The purpose of teaching of the Upanishad is different from storytelling, ‘once upon a time’. It is an important point. There is no use arguing about whether creation exists or not. There is no denying that there is a creation and is experienced. And Uddalaka follows this technique of teaching like a good psychologist.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 1

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Part2

Introduction
The Upanishad belongs to SAma Veda and is important because it is one of the ten Upanishads on which ShankarAchArya has written commentaries. Brahm Sutra discusses many mantrAs of this Upanishad. Study of Brahm Sutra necessarily requires prior study of this Upanishad. It has 8 chapters with 627 mantrAs. The first five chapters discuss Vedic meditations. The outcome of Brahm-upasana, regarded as the highest meditation is krama-mukti. The meditator reaches Brahmaloka and finally merges in Brahman. It is nothing compared to realization of Brahman in this life.

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Tat Tvam Asi (Part 7)

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Part 6

Use of words for Brahman
Brahman is not an object, is free from attributes and, therefore, beyond words and ideas. Up Sah 18.24 states that word or idea can refer to objects of knowledge and not to non-objects. Brahman is known and realized as the innermost self and the ultimate subject and is therefore not an object of knowledge. The same idea is reiterated in 18.28 which says that word can apply to ego which is possessed of species and not to Self which has no classification, i.e., swagata, sajAtatiya and vijAtiya. Self is devoid of any differentiation. The question is why are words used to describe It?

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Eight Upanishads (Topic-wise) Part 41

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Part 40

Chapter 7 Brahma Sutra BhAsya
7-9 BSB 3.4.18 to 3.4.20 SanyAs prescribed by scriptures                                           Purva Paksha (PP) is a performer of Vedic rites and rituals. He holds that there is no Vedic sanction for sanyAs Ashrama. Vedic sanction is for only grihastha ashrama. An exception can be made for handicapped persons who cannot perform rituals. PP says that Brahmacharya Ashrama is a steppingstone for grihastha Ashrama. It is further argued that stages of life where celibacy is prescribed, they are allusions and not injunctions. The Vedic texts that those who give up fire are murderers of gods show that sanyAs is not prescribed by the Vedas.

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