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.
Tag Archives: Saguna Brahman
Surefire Way To Liberation – Part 2
[Part 1]
2. With One Stop Over:
Krishna reveals the universal rule, that governs with no exception, the next birth of a creature. The rule is:
यं यं वापि स्मरन्भावं त्यजत्यन्ते कलेबरम् ।
तं तमेवैति कौन्तेय सदा तद्भावभावितः ॥ — 8.6, BG.
Meaning: Of whatever Being thinking at the end a man leaves the body, Him alone, O son of Kunti, reaches he by whom the thought of that Being has been constantly dwelt upon.
Therefore, his promise is: “Whoso, at the time of death, thinking of Me (Vishnu, the Supreme Lord) alone, leaves the body and goes forth, he reaches My being (My real being as Vishnu); there is no doubt in this as to whether he reaches or not (8.5, BG; 7.30, BG.).” Continue reading
Surefire Way To Liberation – Part 1
Surefire Way To Liberation:
- Non-stop Direct:
One attains (eternal and irreversible) identification with brahman by being established in brahman *even in the closing years of one’s life* — 2.72, BG.
Essential Requirements:
a) Should be free from all desires, be free from hankering, without the idea of (‘me’ and) ‘mine’, and be devoid of pride — 2.71, BG.
Shankara comments at 2.71, BG: Only that man attains peace (Liberation) into whom all desires enter, from all directions, like waters entering into a sea, without overwhelming him.
BrihadAranyaka Upanishad (Part 4)
Chapter 2 Section 1
2.1.1 to 2.1.14 It is a dialogue between GArgya, a BrAhmana and a kshatriya king AjAtshatru of KAsi. GArgya has learnt VedAs and he knows Saguna Brahman. AjAtshatru is a jnAni. GArgya visits AjAtshatru and offers him to teach Brahman. AjAtshatru understands that Gargya’ s main intention is to get dakshinA, i.e., teacher’s fee for teaching. He gives him 1000 cows for his proposal to teach. Though GArgya’s knowledge is confined to Saguna Brahman, he thinks that he knows everything and is proud. He says that he meditates on aspects of Saguna Brahman, namely, sun, moon, lightening, space, air, fire, water, looking glass, sound of breath of walking man, directions, shadow. and asks the king to meditate on these aspects.
Investigating yourself
This is an invitation to reflect on the reality of one’s own self identity.
In the tradition of Advaita Vedanta the distinction between one’s three bodies is basic. For Westerners this way of looking at things requires a change of thinking. Continue reading
