Atma Bodha - Post 19

SLOKA 12:

पंचीकृतमहाभूतसंभवं कर्मसंचितम् ।

शरीरं सुखदुःखानां भोगायतनमुच्यते ॥ १२॥

PANCHIKRITAM SAHAABHUUTA

SAMBHAVAAT KARMA SANCHITAM

SHARIRAM SUKHA DUKHANAAM

BHOGAAYATANAM UCHYATE

(Determined for each individual by his own past actions and made up of the Five elements – that have gone through the process of “five-fold self-division and mutual combination” (Pancheekarana) – are born the gross-body, the medium through which pleasure and pain are experienced, the tent-of-experiences.)

In the previous two slokas, we learnt that it is only due to illusory Upadhis that the ever free, untainted non-dual Self is mistaken as limited. Just like the water that acquires color and taste due to its association with impurities or like the space that seems to be limited due to the impurities, the Self due to its association with the limiting adjuncts seems limited and hence subjected to all misery.

Pancheekarana

Every creation is a manifestation of the gross from the prior subtle state and we all know that the cause precedes the effect.

In the theory of pancheekarana, it is very elaborately pointed out how 5 elements - Space, Air, Fire, Water and Earth are evolved, how they intermingle and how from the subtle “TANMATRAS”, the gross elements are formed.

The five great elements, before their grossification, exist in the pure nature, each by themselves - and hence they are known as TANMATRAS, (literally means “THAT ALONE”)

Bhoga Aayatanam: – “Tenement” of Experience:

The example here is that of a business premises where, at the counter, various transactions take place; goods coming in and goods going out; payments in and payments out; customers in and out. There is a two-way interchange of transactions.

Some transactions bring a profit, some bring a loss. It is all part of a day’s work. This simile is meant to represent the gross body’s main function. It is the counter of experiences at which transactions of actions take place daily.

There are senses bringing in information from the outer world, and other senses take our responses out to the world.  Good deeds are performed, which earn merit or Punya. This merit is very helpful when accumulated and spent in the right direction to serve the purpose of this human birth.

On the other hand, impure actions are also carried out across the same counter, and these bring a loss or a demerit. It is a loss relative to the spiritual goal, even though it may actually involve a huge profit in material terms. Demerit is Paapa, and it also contributes to what kind of birth we will have when reborn.

This human body is the only birth in which Paapa and Punya can be earned. In all other births the existing storehouse of Karma has to be worked out with no opportunity for earning any merits. Hence, the example of a “tenement” or a “counter” for transactions is most appropriate to describe the function of the gross human body.

Thus the gross body which is acquired as a result of actions and thoughts arising out of ignorance of one’s true nature of Self is never permanent nor sentient and hence is only an adjunct of Self.

Love.

Atma Bodha - Post 18

VERSE 11:

नानोपाधिवशादेव जातिवर्णाश्रमादयः ।

आत्मन्यारोपितास्तोये रसवर्णादि भेदवत् ॥ ११।

NAANAA UPAADHI-VASHAAT EVA

JAATI-NAAM-AASHRAM-AADAYAH

AATMANI AAROPITAAH TOYE

RASA-VARNA-AADI BHEDA-VAT.

(Because of Its association with different conditionings (Upadhis) such ideas as caste, color and position are super-imposed upon the Atman, as flavour, colour, etc., are super-imposed on water.)

This verse continues the theme begun in the last verse, expanding on the effect of the different conditionings or Upadhis in appearing to split Reality into pieces.

In the last verse the focus was on finding a solution for the removal of the differences raised by the Upadhis. 

In this verse we are not looking the solution, but we examine the consequences of the appearance of innumerable differences in day-to-day life resulting from these Upadhis.

The Birth of Distinctions in Human Society

The direct result of differences in the Upadhis combined with distortion in our vision is that humanity itself gets split into so many groups, each claiming to have a unique characteristic. Caste, colour and creed are directly mentioned here, but it does not stop there. “And so on” refers to an endless list of other divisions into which humanity gets broken up or splintered.

If diversity were accepted in a healthy spirit, which is possible if there were no ego operating in men, then there is no cause for alarm. In many old traditions, people have successfully lived together in spite of the presence of these differences, because they kept in check their ego from identifying with those differences.

However, that is more an exception than the rule. In most cases, communities have used these differences to create enmity, hostility and even wars among various groups. The tragic reality is the pain and sorrow that our society is suffering from such divisive thinking.

In this context a verse such as this has much to teach us. Sankara is here placing before mankind the bare truth. If we take note of it and correct ourselves at the root of the problem, mankind can save itself from endlessly acting out tragedy after tragedy in the course of its history.

The Example: Water Differentiated by Flavours and Colour:

The simile is again astonishingly appropriate. It is another of the gems pulled out by Sankaracharya from his seemingly unlimited imagination.

Water and its conditioning

Water is intrinsically pure. In that state of purity it is colorless – it takes on the colour of that which it is placed in. It is also tasteless in its pure state. It takes on the taste of any flavor that is added to it, such as tea, coffee, chocolate, cocoa, and so on.

Pure water has the property of accurately conveying the properties of colour and flavour added to it, while ever remaining pure in itself. Water is not to blame if flavours or colors added to it do not agree and produce a dirty displeasing taste or colour.

SELF and its conditioning 

This is precisely what this verse is trying to teach us about society and its problems. The Self is unaffected by all the numerous divisions that are ascribed to It by the power of the ignorance in man, for it always remains uniform and unaffected by them.

When conflicts arise among men, the blame falls on the ignorant understanding of these differences. The conclusion we have to come to is that the Upadhis, by being “near” the Self, impart their own characteristics to the Self, even as the flavors and colours impart their qualities to the water into which they are added.

This, in fact, is the literal meaning of the word Upadhi! The word conditioning does not do full justice to the meaning of Upadhi. 

There is much more to it in the philosophical sense. What exactly are the Upadhis? The next three verses summarize them beautifully into gross, subtle and causal Upadhis…

THE ONE SELF

Like the water is pure, colorless, the non dual Atman can never have any associations and hence is verily bliss but due to ignorance one tends to super impose the characteristics of caste, color, position etc on it.

Chinmaya writes on this verse, thus:-

“……..Whether one is a Doctor or an Advocate or a porter, the inner personality factors are the same. The education gained and the profession pursued may differ but they are all of one community.

Whatever may be the physical shape, name or caste, emotional beauty or the intellectual grasp exhibited, the ATMAN is the same everywhere. There is no difference such as a young Atman or old Atman, a Christian or a Hindu Atman, a rich or a poor Atman and so on.

The same electric current causes the fan to revolve,the refrigerator to cool its contents, the light to burn differently in the green, blue or the red bulbs.

Because of the differentiation in the manifestation of the energy, as it passes through the different equipments, ignorant people call them by different names.

Yet, the electric wireman understands them all as depending upon one energy.

Similarly, life is the same everywhere but the expression of life manifesting through each one of them differs from all others…….”

As Acharya explains in the previous verse, when these are removed, there is but bliss absolute alone, i.e. the Self alone. Hence a seeker must learn to discriminate the reality from the non reality i.e. the Self from the Upadhis that seem to limit it.

Love.

Atma Bodha - Post 17

Verse 10

यथाकाशो हृषीकेशो नानोपाधिगतो विभुः ।

तद्भेदाद्भिन्नवद्भाति तन्नाशे केवलो भवेत् ॥ १०॥

YATHAA AAKAASHAH HRISHEEKESHAH

NAANAA UPAADHI-GATAH VIBHUH;

TAT BHEDAAT BHINNA-VAT BHAATI

TAT NAASHE KEVALAH BHAVET.

(The All-pervading Akasa appears to be diverse on account of its association with various conditionings (Upadhis) which are different from each other. Space becomes one on the destruction of these limiting adjuncts: So also the Omnipresent Truth appears to be diverse on account of Its association with the various Upadhis and becomes one on the destruction of these Upadhis).

Till the previous sloka we have learnt through various examples about the illusory nature of the world. Now Acharya is explaining how the non-dual Brahman who is ever free from any associations appears as various names and forms to an ignorant person. 

 The simile given at the outset in this Sloka is, “Just as space”.

Let us first look at the real situation and then come back to consider the simile. 

What is the Deeper Meaning Behind “Hrsheekesha”. This is derived from two words: Hrisheeka + Isha.

Hrisheeka means “the senses” (Indriyas); 

Isha means the “controller”, governor, one who sustains or gives life. 

The combined meaning reads as “one who controls the senses”, i.e. the Omnipresent Lord.

The Simile of Space:

Space here is directly compared to the all-pervading Omnipresent Self. Space has no limits, it cannot be divided. Yet, man delights in breaking it up into different units, by his  walls and fences, by seeing differences in the sense objects, which then become possessions of individuals.

Space and the Self 

Both are pure

Space is pure. In spite of the different Upadhis superimposed upon it by the ignorance of man, space remains united as one all-pervading entity. This is the idea that is intended to be brought out for the case of the Self. 

The Self is pure, unaffected by all the numerous items It gets associated with in the world. Upon the destruction of the Upadhis, the Self is seen to be unaffected. It always was one and shall always remain one.

Both are infinite but appear as limited

Just like how the space is everywhere but appears to be confined in objects such as pots etc., the infinitude Self appears to be limited only due to the limiting adjuncts or the conditionings, i.e. the upadhis.

Both are formless but appear to have limited form

Though space is indivisible and one, yet in association with objects such as a jar or a tumbler etc. it appears to have taken different forms like, the space in jar takes the form of jar, in a cup that of a cup etc.

A similar illusion of different shapes is also created in the sky when one looks at it against a line of mountains with jagged peaks. 

The space can never be confined but it is only due to ignorance that there seems to be boundaries to the space. It is only due to ignorance that different spaces seem to be created by the boundaries while the space is ever same.

Similarly on account of its association with various upadhis, the Self appears to be limited as different names and forms. It is only due to ignorance that one assigns various attributes on the unlimited Self.

Summary

Swami addresses us as "Divyatma Swarupas".

Here, Sankara brings about the essential nature of  a human being.

The first element to have been created by the supreme Lord is the SPACE.

In many commentaries in vedanta, Space is taken as an example to describe Brahman as Space has in it, the nature of Infinitude or Anantham, Purity or Niranjana, which is the nature of Brahman.

In Avadhuta Gita, few verses, describing the state of a realized avadhutha who verily exists as Brahman, end with the last line which is repeated, thus:-

"Jnanamrutam Samarasam Gaganopamoham"

(I am the essence of all Knowledge, I am Omnipresent like SPACE)

Bringing in the essential nature of SPACE, acharya describes the essential nature of a human, comparing the same to space, thus:-

1) Like the unlimited, Pure Space, we are all essentially, inherently Pure and Unlimited, as God has created us exactly as His own image.

2) Like Space appears to be limited to our limited mind, we also have limited our identity to this Body, Mind and Intellect which is not the way we have been created by God.

3) When the space gets arrested in a pot, we call it as Pot space, as though the space has a limited identity, limited to the available volume within the pot.

However, the moment the pot is broken, there is no more limited space within the pot is there, as the pot itself is not there. There is only one, unlimited SPACE

Exactly in the same manner, we are verily the SELF and out of ignorance, we fail to identity ourselves with the same and instead, like the Pot is seen, we have identified ourselves with our gross identity - This Body with This Ego and have failed to recognize our true identity which is SELF, within us, as the Space within a pot.

Self realization is breaking the limitation of Pot, i.e., breaking all our bondage as a limited Jiva and realizing the oneness of the SELF / ATMAN / INDIVIDUAL CONSCIOUSNESS (The pot space) with the UNIVERSAL SPACE / PURE CONSCIOUSNESS / BRAHMAN (Universal space).

Love.