Chapter 17 Right Knowledge
17.01 to 17.03 The author pays obeisance to Self and the teachers. Self is non-dual as It alone exists. It is of the nature of existence, consciousness and bliss. Other things depend on Self for their existence. It is witnessing consciousness and therefore omniscient. It is not an object. It is the ultimate subject and is to be known as such. Though supporting everything It is unattched, untainted and pure. The author bows down to Self. He bows down to all the teachers who are conversant with words, sentences of the scriptures and have transmitted the knowledge of Self since ancient time. The author bows down to his own teacher whose words have sparked knowledge in him and destroyed ignorance as sunrays destroy darkness.
17.04 to 17.06 The highest human goal is moksha. Moksha is eternal, it is to be realized because an ignorant person does not know the fact that he is free. Once the ignorance is removed, a man of knowledge realizes that he has always been free, is free and will remain free. Freedom is never lost to a man of knowledge. Compared to it, the other human goals which give material benefits, like, wealth, name, fame, are temporary and are cause of sorrow and bondage; they are not worthy acquisitions. As Self-knowledge is needed for moksha, it is the highest attainment. Vedanta, i.e., later part of Vedas, called Upanishads, is the source of Self-knowledge. Earlier part of Vedas, the action portion, called Karma Kanda can be practiced in two manners, namely, for material benefits and for purification of the mind. The purified mind is fit to receive the knowledge.
17.07/08 Self is real and non-Self, e.g., dharma, artha, and kama are unreal (mithya). Because of ignorance, a man considers non-Self as real. An ignorant man desirous of the three goals engages in action. The results of action are perishable because they are dependent on time. Action does not give liberation. Self-knowledge destroys the ignorance. The result of knowledge is liberation which is imperishable. Everything perishes, whether it is something acquired by hard work in this world or it is a place in the other world acquired through meritorious deeds. Those who leave this world without knowing the Self are not free, no matter where they go. Those who know Self are free while living in this world and also after leaving this world.
17.09 The objective of the Veda is to teach oneness of Self, i.e., Self is Brahman. It is learnt by understanding the purport of Vedic Great Saying, e.g., Thou That Art. Though the earlier part of Veda does not teach oneness of Self, it has a supportive role in acquiring knowledge, the theme of Vedanta.
17.10 to 17.13 The author introduces an objector who says that individual Self and Brahman are different from each other as they are two different words. The author replies that there many words (synonymous) with the same meaning. To this, the objector says that Self and Brahman are not synonymous because they represent different things. The argument the objector suffers from the fallacy of reciprocal dependence. Therefore, there is no difference between Self and Brahman. Vedic sentences do not support any difference.
As the Vedas state three things besides the Self viz., names, forms and actions (Br Up 1.6.3) the objector counters that, there is support of the existence of non-Self. The author replies that names, etc, are inter-dependent like a painting and its description. A person hears a word, e.g., name of a god. He sees the god’s painting (form) on a wall and gives a name to it. From word the object is imagined and later from object, the word is imagined. From word to form and form to word; word is dependent on form and form is dependent on form. Same entity is expressed in different manners. Thus, multiplicity is not proved though it is experienced. In this manner, it is reasonable to conclude that the world of multiplicity is not real (mithya). Only Brahman which is Existence-Knowledge is real. It exists prior to everything.
17.14-17.16 In dream, the mind takes the forms of instruments of knowledge (sense organs), knowledge and the object of knowledge. One mind assumes different roles. On waking up, it is found that the dream is unreal though during the dream, it is as real as the waking state. In the same manner, on gaining knowledge, i.e., from the Absolute viewpoint, the waking state is unreal. Brahman with different limiting adjuncts assumes different roles, e.g., knower, knowledge and object of knowledge. It is like a crystal assuming different colours in the proximity of flowers of different colours. Different forms in the waking state are superimpositions on Consciousness.
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