Category Archives: Bimal

Upadesa SAhasrI (Part 3)

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Part 2

Chapter 2 Negation
2.1 to 2.4                                                                                                                        Sruti (Br Up 2.3.6) says: Not this, not this. Self is the left over after negation of everything, i.e., objects of experience. As they are mithyA and changing, they are negated to realize the unchanging remainder. This remainder, the negator cannot be negated. It is the Self and is of the nature of consciousness. It is the true nature of the negator. Self cannot be negated because it is based on pramAna (evidence). Self is the ultimate subject and is the reality. It has an independent existence. Objects are non-Self and are mithyA.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 11

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Part 10

Chapter 8 Section 2                                                                                                          (8.2.1 to 8.2.10)
A person who practices dahAropAsana  goes to Brahm Loka after death where he has two choices: one of liberation and other of enjoyment.  In the former choice, he can enjoy the pleasures of higher qualities which last until the end of one cycle of creation and he takes rebirth in the next cycle of creation.  Additionally, he gets extraordinary powers. He can enjoy the pleasures of all 14 worlds. It is the greatest material pleasure which cannot be acquired by physical effort. One view is that by meditation, the mind acquires extraordinary powers and can project and enjoy such experiences in the waking state. No physical effort is required. Any experience is effectively in the form of a thought, and a powerful mind can create thoughts. Meditation on Isvara gives powers of Isvara except the power of creation.                                                                                  A seeker of liberation is not interested in enjoyment and special powers. He has the choice to get the Vedantic teachings from Brahmaji, become enlightened and be liberated

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Upadesa SAhasrI Part 2

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Part 1

Part 3

Verses 1.6 to 1.11
In verse 5, it has been said that knowledge is desirable as it is the only means of liberation. It will be explained later that as action is not incompatible with ignorance, it does not destroy ignorance. Instead, action perpetuates ignorance and impurities like desire and aversion remain. Knowledge alone destroys ignorance. Therefore, Upanishad teaches knowledge and does not teach action.
Purva paksha (PP) objects to the view that action is not necessary. There are three reasons. Actions, e.g., rites and rituals ordained by scriptures must be performed. If they are not performed, it will incur sin. Furthermore, performance of obligatory duties has a supportive role to pursuit of knowledge. Verse 2, Isa Upanishad says that one should perform action till the life lasts. As such, action and knowledge should be practiced together. It is called samuchayavAd: combination of action and knowledge.

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BrihadArnyAka Upanishad (Part 11)

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Part 10

3.7.15 to 3.7.23
There is one internal ruler though the organs are different. The organs do not know that the ruler is different from them, but He knows them. The “Internal Ruler is your own immortal self”. “He· is never seen but is the Witness; He is never heard but is the Hearer; He is never thought but is the Thinker; He is never known but is the Knower. There is no other witness but Him, no other hearer but Him, no other thinker but Him, no other knower but Him.” After getting the answers, Uddalaka becomes silent.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 10

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Part 9

Part 11

Chapter 8
Introduction
The chapter has 15 sections. Sections 1 to 6 deal with meditation on Saguna Brahman, sections 7 to 12 deal with Nirguna Brahman in the form of a dialogue between Prajapati and Indra. The last three sections discuss spiritual disciplines. The perception of objective world is dependent on sense organs. And the capacity of the sense organs is finite. They cannot provide the complete reality because the Absolute is supra-sensuous. The externality that is characteristic of the outer world prevents it from revealing the Absolute because one of the aspects of the Absolute is subjectivity which is inside.

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BrihadArnyAka Upanishad (Part 10)

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Part 9

Part 11

Chapter 3 Section 5
3.5.1 
Kahola, the next questioner asks Yajnavalkya to explain Brahman which is immediate, direct, and the self within all. Yajnavalkya has already answered this in the previous section. Therefore, he gives more details. The Self is witnessing consciousness beyond worldly dualities. It is not affected by hunger and thirst, grief, delusion, decay and death. Since the Self is infinite and complete, It is free from desires of son, wealth, etc. All desires are essentially same for they arise out of attachment to perishable, which in turn is due to Self-ignorance. A knower of Self meditates on the Self which means he identifies himself with the non-changing Self. He transcends death and is immortal. He treats himself different from the transient MBS even while using MBS for worldly transactions. How does a Self-realized person behave? It is said howsoever he may behave he is such, i.e., he is ever established in the Self. There is internal transformation. The expression, ‘Howsoever he may behave,’ is intended for a tribute to this state of a knower of Brahman and does not mean reckless behaviour. Kahola withdraws.

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Updesa SAhasrI-Part 1

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Part 2

Chapter 1 Upodghatprakaranam
Upadesa SAhasrI means A thousand Teachings. Its authorship is attributed to Adi ShankarAchArya. It has two parts- prose and verse with many paragraphs and verses which is a figurative justification of the title. Prose part has 116 paragraphs.  Verse part which has 19 chapters is the focus here. Some of the chapters are small and chapter 18 titled Tat Tvam Asi is the biggest with 233 verses. There are totally 675 verses across all 19 chapters. Upodghat means introduction and prakaranam means chapter. Verse 1 is a prayer and much more. A prayer is generally for successful completion of the objective. Here it contains teachings also. The seeker prays (bows down) to Nirguna Brahman which is of the nature of pure consciousness. It is the Self (essential nature) of a jIva. It resides in the cave (intellect) of everyone and is like a witness of the intellect. It is within and without. It is all-pervading like rope pervading the mithyA snake in rope-snake metaphor. It is omniscient. It is beyond all perceptions and all objects of knowledge.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8)-Part 9

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Part 8

Part 10

7.25.1 and 7.25.2
The infinite alone is below, is above, is behind, is in front. It is in all directions-to the south, to the north. That alone is all this. The empirical world is mithyA. There is no second entity supporting Bhuma. There is nothing else besides Him on which He can be established. It is self-supported, so to say. That the wave supports water is a misstatement. There is no wave other than water. In order to avoid a possible misconception that individual soul is different from the Infinite, the Upanishad gives instructions: “I am indeed below, I am indeed above, I am behind, I am in front, I am in the south, I am in the north, I am indeed all this”. Even then, non-discriminating people might conceive I as representing mind and body. Therefore, further instructions are imparted: The Self indeed is below, the Self is above, the Self is behind, in the front, in the south and in the north, and the Self is indeed all this.

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BrihdArnyAka Upanishad (Part 9)

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Part 8

Part 10

Chapter 3 Section 1- Asvala brahman
3.1.1 and 3.1.2 King Janak of Videh performs a sacrifice in which many Vedic scholars are present. The king desires to know the most erudite scholar whom he will reward with 1000 cows with gold covered horns. None of the scholars comes forward except Yajnavalkya (in short Yvk), a Vedic scholar who straight away asks one of his disciples to drive home the cows indicating that he considers himself the best. Naturally, other scholars object.

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ChAndogya Upanishad (Chapters 6 to 8) Part 8

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Part 7(3)

Part 9

7.16.1, 7.17.1, 7.18.1, 7.19.1, 7.20.1, 7.21.1, 7.22.1, and 7.23.1
Sanatkumar wants to remove the wrong conclusion of Narada. He remarks that one speaks well who speaks truth implying that Narada’s knowledge is short of truth. He also says that one speaks truth who understands truth. Narada is curious and expresses his desire to understand truth and understanding of truth. And for understanding, one must reflect. Reflection means Vedantic inquiry. In the absence of inquiry, one may say that fire or the three colours in it are the supreme entity. For inquiry one must have faith in scriptures and the teacher. It is not a token faith for name’s sake. It must be sustained and steadfast. Steadfastness stands for earnestness in obediently listening to the preceptor with a view to attaining knowledge of Brahman.

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