Now, we will get deeper
into the remaining 2 lines of the first dhyana
shloka.
“He is the Teacher of teachers, holding his hand
in Chinmudra (the sign of knowledge), and his form is Bliss. He ever revels in
His own Self, and is ever content – I worship that Sri Dakshinamurti)”
Chin mudra
As per the earlier 2 lines of this shloka, if there is only silence, then how does the teaching take place in silence? There must be some methodology of teaching? The methodology employed by Dakshinamurti, is Chinmudra (also called Jnana mudra).
Dakshinamurti is
described as the one who has Chinmudra visible in his hand. It explains how
Dakshinamurti taught in silence. This mudra, in general, indicates teaching.
But it also yields much more profound Vedantic teachings. This mudra has a lot
of symbolism associated with it.
The middle, ring and small fingers represent Body, Mind and Senses. They also represent Waking, Dreaming and Deep sleep states. It could also represent Sthula Shareera (Physical Body), Sukshma Shareera (Subtle Body) and Karan Shareera (Causal Body). It can have many such representations. In general it represents part of you which is Kshara (that decays over time).
But there is another aspect of you in addition to those. That is you, the conscious observer.
The index finger represents that you the conscious observer, the Atman.
And, Who are you as a Jiva?
You are an assemblage of all four of these aspects. You are sat chit ananda atma (the index finger, the conscious observer) accompanied by body, mind and senses (the other three fingers). This is what makes you a Jiva, an individual person.
Brahman
The hand function depends upon thumb. The thumb represents that upon which everything depends. Thumb hence represents Brahman – the reality because of which everything exists.
So, you, the Jiva, is represented by the four fingers. The Brahman upon which everything depends for its existence is represented by the thumb. They seem to be very separate – distinct from each other, which means, though you the Jiva owe your existence to Brahman, the one who illumines all the four aspects of you, still, Brahman ( the thumb) stands apart from you, having no relation with you ( or may we say, a relation-less relation with you)
The index finger joining the Thumb, forming a circle, cut off from the other three fingers is the indication of the Atman (index finger) joining the Brahman (Thumb), leaving aside or transcending the other 3 fingers.
That is, the Jiva transcends his 3 gunas, 3 states of consciousness, his body, mind and senses and merges in Brahman.
This is the Jiva - Brahma Aikyam (Jivoh Brahmaiva Na: Parah, the Jiva is not distinct / apart from Brahman).
This is how Dakshinamurti taught the rishis in silence. He was teaching them through mudra. This mudra represents the highest teachings of Vedanta.
What could not be expressed in words was conveyed through this beautiful symbol of Chinmudra.
The four aspects of Jiva and then Brahman, is beautifully explained in Mundaka Upanishad through the analogy of 2 birds.
There are two birds in this tree of life. This tree of life may be either this body of the individual, or it may be the entire creation itself.
Ishvara (God) and Jiva (living beings) are present in the world of creation as well as in the human body. They are friends. They are inseparable siblings, one connected with the other perpetually. These are compared to birds living on a single tree which is this vast creation. And they enjoy their existence on the tree.
The only difference is,
one of these birds is busy enjoying the delicious fruit that is of the tree and
the other bird is not interested in eating anything. It is merely looking on,
unconcerned and unattached.
This unattached bird is God, Ishvara, seated in your own heart and everywhere in this world.
The bird that is eating the sweet fruit of this tree is the individual soul, the mind-body complex.
So, there are two phases of experience going on in one’s own body: a consciousness that is totally detached, and a consciousness that is very much involved.
The detached consciousness in us is called Kutastha- Chaitanya.
The very consciousness that is contaminated by the body, mind and sense organs becomes jiva.
Consciousness connected with the sense organs, mind and body is the jiva, the individual, so-called.
This is represented by 4 fingers in the chin mudra, where, as per the above analogy, the index finger ( individual consciousness) contaminated by the three fingers, our BMI complex) is what a Jiva is.
The detached consciousness, unconnected with these, is Ishvara Himself. Because consciousness cannot be located only in one place, cannot be divided into parts, cannot have fractions, it is therefore Universal. (The thumb finger in the chin mudra)
At the end, the lower bird, eating the fruits of its own Karma, comes to realize that the higher bird is no other than the lower bird and not only that, the entire forest, all trees (representing the entire creation) is also not different from itself.
That is, there is no Jiva existing separately ever, no identity of the lower bird ever. There is no Brahman existing separately, in high heaven, inaccessible ever, there is no Higher bird ever.
There is no atman, there is no Brahman, there is no separate Jagat (No forest existing separate from Brahman), No Iswara separate from the Jiva and Jagat. The bird, considering itself as lower, inferior than the higher bird, ultimately discovers that the bird, the higher bird, the forest - all these were illusion, all these were super imposition on the one reality, pure consciousness.
Once the illusion of snake is gone, only rope remains.
This is the highest realization in Vedanta, where the Jiva realizes that He is the SELF and there is nothing apart from him, the pure SELF.
All this, Sri Dakshinamurti taught in silence through chin-mudra!
Teacher of teachers
Who is teaching? The one who is the king of teachers. Shri Dakshinamurti would be the first of the teachers of Vedanta. Hinduism had its origin in Vedas. The Vedas were revealed to the ancient rishis. That’s what the mythological story represents.
The Vedas were first revealed to these four rishis by Shri Dakshinamurti Shiva. So Dakshinamurti becomes the first of the teachers. The teacher of all the teachers.
In Bliss
Dakshinamurti is also said to be in the form of ananda – an embodiment of happiness. That is connected with term whose face is pleased – smiling face. HE is embodiment of happiness. He is beyond any worldly suffering.
At the same time, he is not laughing at us. He has a slight smile not only because he is an embodiment of happiness, not only because he is fullness, but because as Guru, he understands that we (his students) are suffering.
And, he also knows that the cause of our suffering is not real. Mankind suffers due to ignorance. Shri Dakshinamurti knows our suffering is merely due to ignorance. Therefore, he has a slight smile on his face.
Echoing the same truth, ashtavakra says to his disciple janaka,
(You are not the body, nor is the body is your’s. You are neither doer nor the enjoyer. You are the consciousness itself, the eternal, indifferent witness. Realizing this, you may go around happily)
Revels in own
SELF
Dakshinamurti is one who revels in one’s own self. Usually, we look outside for sources of contentment, comfort, peace, joy and happiness. True source for peace, love, happiness is however, not outside but lies within. Dakshinamurti as a teacher already knows that. Therefore, he is reveling within suggests not looking outside for peace, happiness, and contentment.
I/We worship this Teacher of teachers, who is in ever in bliss, who revels in SELF, who teaches in silence through chin-mudra.
Love.
