SELECTIONS
FROM
BRHADAARANYAKA UPANISHAT
[AJAATASHATRU
INSTRUCTS GAARGYA]
CONVERSATION BETWEEN AJAATASHATRU AND
GAARGYA
There lived a great Sage named Garga. He was the son of Sage
Bharadvaaja. He was revered as the family Preceptor by the family of Nanda, the
foster father of Sri Krishna Vaasudeva.
In any family, the future generations carry only the name as
their pride and do not imbibe the knowledge of the ancestors. Baalaaki was an
example for that. He was highly arrogant and proud of his family name. He
considered himself equal to Sage Garga and behaved rudely with other Brahmins
of his times. He was well versed in Scriptures but was not a realized Sage like
his ancestor Garga. He argued out any opponent with the mere play of words he
had mastered from the Vedas. He was nicknamed as Proud Baalaaki (Drpta
Baalaaki). Every one feared his torrent of words and kept away from him for
fear of ridicule and scornful retorts.
Baalaaki was always envious of Sage Yajnavalkya, who
collected enormous gold and cows from King Janaka by offering the king some
knowledge about Brahman whenever he needed wealth. Baalaaki knew in his heart of hearts that his
knowledge of Scriptures was not enough to please a knower of Brahman like King
Janaka. He decided that Ajaatashatru, the king of Banaras
could be fooled to part with wealth by some talks on Brahman. He had no way of
knowing Ajaatashatru had also mastered the knowledge of Brahman like king
Janaka and was more learned than Baalaaki himself.
Baalaaki sent word to Ajaatashatru that he wished to honor
him with his visit.
The king had already heard of Baalaaki’s arrogant behavior
from his confidants and agreed to give an audience to the ignorant Brahmin and
teach him a lesson.
Baalaaki entered the court, his head held high and looking
like a Brahma descended on Earth to grace the ignorant souls.
The king welcomed him with all due rites and got him seated
on a golden throne. He politely enquired the proud Brahmin the purpose of his
visit.
Baalaaki looked at the king as if he was just a worm
crawling at his feet and said:
ॐ
दृप्तबालाकिर्हानूचानो
गार्ग्य आस,
स होवाचाजातशत्रुं काश्यं,
ब्रह्म ते ब्रवाणीति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
सहस्रमेतस्यं वाचि दद्मः,
जनको जनक इति
वै जना
धावन्तीति ॥ १ ॥
1. There was the proud Baalaaki born
in the family of Sage Garga.
He said to Ajaatashatru, king of
Kaashi,
“O King! I, the great Baalaaki,
have come here to teach you about Brahman.”
(The king smiled graciously with a mischievous twinkle in
the eye.)
Ajaatashatru said:
“O
Sage! (I am blessed indeed by your visit.)
I will offer you thousand cows for this
proposal.
People
rush saying Janaka Janaka always.
(Always
King Janaka gets all the name and fame as a Sage in the guise of a King. He never tires of organizing debates on
Brahman and showers all the Sages and Brahmins with countless gifts. I am happy
that you have decided to honor me with your visit and raise me to the level of
King Janaka. Soon I will also become a famous Raajarshi like Janaka. So please
instruct me about Brahman.”)
Baalaaki’s stern face mellowed down a little. His future as
a rich Brahmin always collecting wealth from the king loomed large before his
eyes. He smiled at the king compassionately and said,
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवासावादित्ये पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
अतिष्टाः सर्वेषां भूतानां मूर्धा
राजेति अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्तेऽतिष्टाः सर्वेषां
भूतानां मूर्धा राजा भवति ॥ २ ॥
2. Gaargya said,
“I meditate on that embodied
being (PURUSHA) who exists in the Sun (AADITYA) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as that lustrous
shining one who is the Lord of all (BHOOTAANAAM MOORDHAA RAAJAA).”
He who meditates upon him as such
becomes all-surpassing, head of all beings and resplendent.
PURUSHA is the embodied individual self, one who resides in
the City of nine gates namely the body.
‘Aaditya’ is the Sun deity, the son of Aditi.
Gaargya refers here to the Sun who makes the life on Earth
possible. It is by the light of the Sun that the beings perceive the world and
perform their ordained actions. The perception occurs because of the Sun, the
source of light. When the light enters the eye, perception occurs and the
perceiver sees the worlds. So the perceiver is the ‘ego’ residing in the aggregate
of the body and organs. I meditate on that being who perceives the world
through this body endowed with senses as Brahman, says Baalaaki.
However king Ajaatashatru refers by the term ‘Sun’ to the
Brahman who remains as a mute witness to all the actions of the individual self.
Sun is the indirect cause of the actions that occur on
Earth. Sun is the nonchalant witness of everything that happens without itself
getting affected by it. Similarly
Consciousness which is just ‘pure awareness’ which lights up all perceptions is
represented by the term ‘Sun’. The term ‘Sun’ represents the witness principle
namely the consciousness (Chit) which though the indirect cause of the
principles of ‘perceiver, perceived and perceiving’, is unaffected by the
nature of perceptions.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवासौ चन्द्रे पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
बृहन्पाण्डारवासाः सोमो राजेति
वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्तेऽहरहर्ह सुतः
प्रसुतो भवति,
नास्यान्नम् क्षीयते ॥ ३ ॥
3. Gaargya said,
“I meditate on that embodied one (PURUSHA)
in the Moon (CHANDRA) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as that
great white-robed, radiant Soma. ”
He who meditates upon him as such
has abundant Soma pressed in all the principal and auxiliary Sacrifices
everyday and is never short of food.
Gaargya refers here to the Moon deity which is the consumer
of Soma.
The term Chandra means ‘glittering’ ‘shining’. In the Vedas,
Soma is portrayed as sacred and as a god (Deva). The god, the drink and the
plant probably referred to the same entity, or at least the differentiation was
ambiguous. Two holy drinks exist: Soma for the immortal soul and Amrita for the
immortal body. The gods drink Soma, and become deities. Indra and Agni are
portrayed as consuming Soma in copious quantities. The consumption of Soma by
human beings is probably under the belief that it bestows divine qualities on
them.
However king Ajaatashatru refers by the term ‘Moon’ to the
Brahman who is the principle of Mind.
Moon which waxes and wanes refers to the principle of Mind
which oscillates between pleasure and pain. The perceiver experiences pain and
pleasure through the mental faculty. Mind is the sixth sense which collects all
the random data coming through the five senses of Knowledge and presents a
coherent picture of the Universe. Mind is one of the functions of the Brain.
Brahman alone projects the Mind as the perceived world and
experiences the pain and pleasure as the individual self.
Pure Consciousness is the sum-total of all the bliss
experienced by any one at any time. Mind contacts the world through the senses
and becomes happy by fulfilling its desires. We super-impose the pain and
pleasures as belonging to the objects perceived by senses. But actually the
Mind as a devolved principle of Chit experiences the bliss of Chit alone, when
it is happy. The mind is happy whenever a desire is fulfilled. The anxiety
remains as long as the desire needs to get fulfilled. Once the desire is
satisfied, the mind dies at that moment. A flash of bliss occurs where the Chit
shines forth as pure awareness, like the Sun shines when clouds dissolve away.
But instantly another desire or need arises and mind rises up like the phoenix
bird and exists as the principle of anxiety and apprehension.
Moon gets it light from the Sun. The glittering of the Moon
is due to the shine of the Sun.
Mind exists because of the Chit principle.
What bliss is experienced by the Mind is just a reflected
light of the Sun, the bliss principle of Chit.
So the king describes ‘Moon’ as ‘getting pressed with
abundant Soma’.
Moon is white-robed (PAANDARAVAASAAHA).
‘White robed’ means the ‘power of Praana’. Praana is the grosser
layer of the Mind. Both Praana and Mind are interconnected and act
complementary to each other. If one stops its function, other also ceases to exist.
The main purpose of Praanaayaama or breath-control is aimed at the cessation of
thoughts. Stop the breath and the mind stops functioning.
So Soma, ‘the pleasure and pain experiencing mind’ is
sheathed by Praana, the white robed. White
robe also refers to the aqueous nature of the Vital force. Water is a term used
in Vedas to refer to the ‘flow of experiences’ of an individual.
As the contact point between the world and mind, Praana is
the channel for experiences the mind has to undergo. So it is said to be
aqueous in nature.
Moon radiantly shines forth. {RAAJAA)
As mind is just another form of Chit which is acting as the experiencer,
it shines forth radiantly. Mind is the Creator of all our perceptions.
The undifferentiated principle of Chit acts as the Mind and
becomes the perceived world.
The Chit perceives the world projected by the mind and
becomes the experiencer as it were. Chit the ever shining principle of
Consciousness becomes the Sun, the mute perceiver of all actions.
By the power of Chit, Mind projects a world and experiences
pain and pleasure.
The ever oscillating mind runs after Soma, the bliss factor
and wants to consume it in huge quantities. Though the mind seems to be consuming
(Soma) bliss from the outside world of objects, in reality the bliss is
experienced because of the Chit (Sun) alone which is just a witness and
indirect cause of everything.
Mind grossified as Praana connects itself to the outside
world projected by itself.
A knower of Brahman does not run after the pleasures of the
world and knows that the perceived world is unreal and has no innate bliss as
its nature.
He contemplates on Brahman as himself and never is short of
bliss; nor does he run after the sense pleasures for happiness as he remains as
the source of all perceptions.
Ajaatashatru refers to the Brahman as the source of the
bliss.
One who realizes Brahman is Brahman himself. He becomes the
Lord of all. He sees his own Self as all.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवासौ विद्युति पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
तेजस्वीति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते तेजस्वी ह
भवति,
तेजस्विनी हास्य प्रजा भवति ॥
४ ॥
4. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied person in the Lightning (VIDYUT) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as that
which is extremely lustrous and powerful (TEJASVEE). ”
He who meditates upon him as such
becomes lustrous and his progeny also is lustrous.
Gaargya refers here to the Deity of Lightning.
The king however refers to the ‘thought’ or the ‘Chitta vrtti’
by the term ‘VIDYUT’ (Lightning). Lightning is the term which refers to the
continuous agitations or thoughts produced in the mind. Where there are clouds,
there is water; where the clouds dash against each other, lightning occurs.
Unmanifest desires are the unmanifest waters in the clouds
in the form of vapors ready to pour out as rains. Desires in the unconscious
part of our mind always are in a ready-state to become grossified as
experiences.
With our inner mind filled with countless desires, collisions
are a common feature. We rush after the fulfillment of desires all at once and
these desire-clouds clash; lightning occurs. Thoughts keep on arising giving
different orders to the senses all at once. The thunder also accompanies as the
‘AHAMKAARA’ the ‘I’ factor of the mind.
If the clouds were not there, lightning will not occur and
thunder will also not be there.
If desires are absent, there are no experiences of the world
and there is no ego also.
Only the Sun shines with all its brilliance. Pure consciousness
alone remains as the mute witness. The Jeevan Muktaa in such a state remains
blissful as his own Self. He does not hanker after the pleasures of the world.
Brahman is ‘Tejaswee’, the most powerful, because Brahman is
the very source of all lustrous things existing in the world. He is the ever
shining Chit state, acting as the witness of all the ‘times and places’ that
arise out of the mind.
One who contemplates on his own self as the principle of awareness
remains as Brahman alone and is supremely lustrous. The flashes of awareness
namely thoughts, referred to by the term ‘lightning’, does not trouble him
anymore. He remains as bliss and whatever progeny he begets namely the
perceived worlds, also become a projection of his own Self. He sees himself as
all and remains ever blissful.
He is the supreme Brahman and is not troubled by agitations any
more.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायमाकाशे पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
पूर्णमप्रवर्तोति वा
अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते पूर्यते प्रजया पशुभिः
नास्यास्माल्लोकात्प्रजोद्वर्तते
॥ ५ ॥
5. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the AAKAASHA (space) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as the
Whole (POORNAM) and non-acting
(APRAVARTA). ”
He who meditates upon him as such
is filled with progeny and cattle and his progeny will never go extinct from
this world.”
Gaargya refers here to the deity of the skies. However the
king refers to the idea of ‘space/time’ in the mind by the term ‘AAKAASHA’. The
extension of space is projected from the brain.
According to the king the term ‘Aakaasha’ refers to the
entire world of space and time as Brahman. Everything in space is an expression
of Brahman. So he explains that Brahman is everything that is in the world
contained within the space-time boundaries.
The king uses the term ‘Aakaasha’ in a different sense than
that of a deity. According to him the ‘element-space’ which makes the
visibility of the objects possible is in fact only a projection of the mind.
The whole world exists as a tiny vibration of the CHITTAAKAASHA,
the ‘Mind-space’. This mind which contains countless universes again exists as
just a ‘slight perturbation’ in the CHIDAAKAASHA, the ‘space of the Consciousness’.
So the king presents a counter argument to Gaargya saying that he meditates on
the Self as the very point transcending space-time phenomenons which contains
within it whatever that exists as space or time.
Self is ‘Whole’. Since there exists nothing outside Brahman,
there is no action arising from it. One who knows his Self as ‘whole’ and ‘non-acting’
is the Lord of whatever exists in any space at any time. He is not the
perceiver of the world inside a space-time boundary but the very reality which
makes the existence of everything possible. He can create whatever world he
feels like. He remains as the eternal principle of Brahman transcending space
and time.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायं वायौ पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
इन्द्रो वैकुण्टोऽपराजिता सेनेति
वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते जिष्णर्हापराजिष्णुर्भवत्यन्यतस्त्यजायी ॥ ६ ॥
6. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the VAAYU (Wind) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as the
Lord of all (INDRA), completely freed from anxiety (VAIKUNTA),
undefeated and as the unvanquished army (APARAAJITAA SENAA). ”
He who meditates upon him as such
is ever victorious and invincible; and conquers all his enemies.”
Gaargya refers here to the deity of Winds. However the king
refers to the subtle energy or Praana which connects the mind to the world.
Praana acts as the bridge between Aativaahika and Aadhibhoutika
bodies.
(Aativaahika is the mental phenomenon – a collection of
thoughts, ideas and belief systems. Aadhibhoutika is the physical phenomenon
composed of elements.)
According to the king, Praana is the Supreme Chit or
Consciousness which is the support of the entire existence of anything and
everything. This Praana is just another level of Para Brahman.
This Brahman is ‘Indra’, the Lord whom the senses serve by
providing the data of the world. This Brahman who manifests as the Supreme support
of the Creation is the principle of contact and is ‘Vaikunta’ – free of
afflictions because he is the source of the very mind, the abode of
afflictions.
This Brahman cannot be conquered by any one as no one exists
besides ‘That’.
This Brahman is ‘unvanquished army’. The Brahman is the sum total
of all Vaasanaas. These Vaasanaas are the infinite possibilities and
potentialities which manifest as countless worlds. They never can ever end.
Either they remain as potentialities or change into realities. These can never
be destroyed.
One who realizes this Supreme state of Brahman is never affected
by the Vaasanaas and is free of all afflictions. He remains as the Supreme
subtle power of Brahman unaffected by both Aativaahika and Aadhibhoutika
bodies.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायमग्नौ पुरुष एतमेवाहं ब्रह्मोपास
इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
विषासहिरिति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते विषासहिर्ह भवति,
विषासहिर्हास्य प्रजा भवति ॥
७ ॥
7. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the AGNI (Fire) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as one who
has extreme forbearance (VISHAASAHI). ”
He who meditates upon him as such
becomes extremely forbearing and his progeny also becomes forbearing.
AGNI means –ANGATI –URDHVAM GACCHATI- goes up.
Gaargya refers to the Fire which is one of the principle
elements, which is also the deity of Vedas, who acts as a communicator between
the performers of sacrifice and gods.
The king however refers to the Supreme Consciousness, Chit as
the Fire.
The term ‘Agni’ or fire refers to the individual self.
When the Unmanifest manifests as the world, a separate
entity as it were arises like a wave in the ocean of Chit
This individual self which is in essence the Supreme Brahman
gets deluded as a limited phenomenon. This is the ‘fire’ which is forever
trying to consume the fuel of pleasures and pains. Acting as a channel for
Vaasanaas, it becomes the producer of more Vaasanaas and keeps the cycle of worldly
existence going on forever.
The king says that he contemplates on the Supreme Brahman
who appears deluded as it were as the individual self or fire. This Brahman is
unaffected by the pains or pleasures of the world. He who realizes the essence
of his own existence remains unaffected by any occurrences of the world and has
extreme forbearance and equanimity. Those who follow this instruction and
meditate on the supreme Brahman as fire namely the individual self also remain
unaffected by the pains and pleasures of the world; his progeny.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायमप्सु पुरुष एतमेवाहं ब्रह्मोपास
इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
प्रतिरूप इति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते प्रतिरूपं हैवैनमुपगच्छति,
नाप्रतिरूपं अथो प्रतिरूपोऽस्माज्जायते
॥ ८ ॥
8. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the AAPA (WATER) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as the same image (PRATIROOPAM
– as agreeable). ”
(I attain only my own ‘Self’
everywhere, never anything other than my own self. Whatever arises out of me
also is my own self, the image of Para Brahman.)
He who meditates upon him as such
has all agreeable thing coming to him, and not the contrary ones; his progeny
is also agreeable only.
Gaargya refers to the deity of Waters by the term ‘AAPA’.
However, the king gives the meaning ‘experiences’ to the word ‘AAPA’, the
waters. The ‘ego’ is a continuum produced as it were, by the continuous flow of
experiences like the constant picture of a water fall seen in the ever
continuous flow of water drops.
According to the king ‘waters’ are also a form of Brahman
alone. The source from which these experiences arise, the support of these
experiences is Brahman alone.
The Unmanifest Brahman alone appears as the manifest form of
experiences.
There is nothing else other than the Brahman.
The individual self which experiences the world is the image
of Para Brahman alone. One who contemplates on his own self as the essence of
Brahman sees only his self everywhere.
The misconception of a separate individuality vanishes and
only Para Brahman shines as the undifferentiated principle.
Since there exists nothing other than the Brahman, the
experiencer (fire) also is Brahman. The
Jeevan Muktaa is Brahman himself.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायमादर्शे पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
रोचिष्णुरिति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते रोचिष्णुर्ह भवति
रोचिष्णुर्हास्य प्रजा भवति,
अथो यैः सन्निगच्छति सर्वांस्तानतिरोचते
॥ ९ ॥
9. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the mirror (AADARSHA) as Brahman.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as the
shining one (ROCHISHNUHU). ”
He who meditates upon him as
such, shines; he surpasses anything he contacts.
Gaargya refers to the deity of the mirror by the term ‘AAdarsha’.
The king refers to the word ‘AAdarsha’, to mean Brahman; the
one who makes all appearances possible. AAdarsha as Brahman is the very mirror inside
which countless universes are reflected. But unlike the ordinary mirror, there
does not exist anything outside the mirror getting reflected inside the mirror.
There is no ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ in Para Brahman. Brahman is one
undifferentiated state of Existence.
Here the Para Brahman who exists as both the unmanifest and
the manifest exists as the mirror reflecting the appearances of the worlds. The
very nature of the mirror is to reflect images. The very nature of Brahman is
to exist as the perceived worlds also. The mirror and reflections both are Para
Brahman. Brahman is the supreme principle of consciousness which makes the
world appearances possible. He alone shines as the mirror reflecting the
worlds. He shines as all.
We always perceive only the images in the mirror and never
the glass. So also, we do not know the existence of Para Brahman on which the
world is reflected.
One who realizes the Brahman sees his own Self as the entire
world. He knows that he alone is the mirror of Brahman where the unreal
appearances of the world keep occurring. Since he shines as the very support and
source of the world, nothing can surpass his shine. Reflections can never shine
surpassing the mirror. Mirror alone shines as the reflected images also.
The realized knower remains as Brahman alone.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायं यन्तं पश्चाच्छब्दोऽनूदेत्येतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
असुरिति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते सर्वं हैवास्मिंल्लोक आयुरेति,
नैनं पुरा कालात्प्राणो जहाति
॥ १० ॥
“I meditate on Brahman as the sound (SHABDA) that arises behind as he walks
(YANTAM).”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I
meditate upon myself as the one who resides in the body (ASUHU). ”
He who meditates upon him as such
lives the full term of his life. Life
does not depart from him before the allotted time.
Gaargya refers to the term SHABDA as the ego or the
AHAMKAARA of the individual self as it moves about in the delusory world.
The term ‘YANTAM’ means moving towards something. Each
individual self moves in the space projected by the mind fulfilling the
Vaasanaas. As successive Vaasanaa fulfillment takes place, the persisting
memory of experiences creates the individuality. One segregates oneself from
others with the idea of ‘I’, the first sound which arises from the silence of
the Brahman.
However the king points out that he meditates on the ‘life’ (ASU)
as Brahman.
The term ‘ASU’ means one who lives in the physical attire. There
is no individual self at all as separate entity from the Supreme and there
exists no meaning in the ‘I’ness idea.
Each Vaasanaa projects a space-time arena for its
fulfillment. The collective projections of countless Vaasanaas give rise to the
false sense of an individual experiencing a life.
This individual, who is chosen to act randomly as the
channel for the fulfillment of Vaasanaas, is referred to by the term Jeeva.
Jeeva is the collective manifestation of many Vaasanaas. But the essence of each
Jeeva is the supreme Brahman. He alone appears as a living entity experiencing
the pains and pleasures of a world appearance.
One who contemplates on the essence of the living entity
called Jeeva remains as Brahman himself. He never ceases to exist. As a Jeevan
Muktaa he lives without getting controlled by the Vaasanaas. He remains a
witness to the life events and becomes deathless. The existence or
non-existence of the physical body does not affect him at all. He is Brahman
himself.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायं दिक्षु पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
द्वितीयोऽनपग इति वा अहमेतमुपास
इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते द्वितीयवान् ह भवति,
नास्माद्गणश्छिद्यते ॥ ११ ॥
11. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate upon that embodied being in the ‘Directions’ (Quarters) as Brahman.
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as the
second and as non-separating.”
He who meditates upon him as such
has companions and his companions never desert him.
Gaargya refers to the term ‘DIK’ to mean the twin deities of
Quarters namely the ASHVINS. However the
king refers to the term as ‘fixed ideas of space’ an embodied being has in his
mind. An embodied person identifies with the physical body perceived by him as belonging
to him and identifies with it. That makes him also believe that he is a
conditioned being bound by the space/time phenomenon.
The sum total of all creations is the Hiranya Garbha, the
golden wombed Purusha who fills all the directions. He is the first individual
self of which all other individual selves form a part of.
The king suggests that the Brahman contemplated by him is of
course the ‘Supreme Individual Self Brahma’, who appears as if he is a second
person existing separate from the Supreme Self. But since the Supreme self and
the individual self are both identical, they are never separate. One who
realizes his identity with the Supreme person sees all the selves as his own Self
and never is separated from them. He is all. Brahman is all.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायं छायामयः पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः, मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
मृत्युरिति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते सर्वं हैवास्मिंल्लोक आयुरेति,
नैनं पुरा कालान्मृत्युरागच्छति
॥ १२ ॥
12. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being as of the nature of shadow (CHAAYAAMAYAHA).
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as Death.”
He who meditates upon him as such
lives the full term of his life. Life does not depart from him before the
allotted time.
Gaargya refers to the term CHAAYAA to mean the deity in the
shadow or external darkness, internally in ignorance, which is a veil covering
the Knowledge. The term CHAAYAA means the ignorance that is in the embodied
person. Since the individual self identifies himself with the physical body,
the ascertainment of death at the destruction of the physical attire is
imminent. This is the shadow of ignorance which accompanies the individual self
according to Gaargya.
However the king counter argues saying that he contemplates
on ‘death’ as his own self. Death here means the Unmanifest. Vaasanaas are
potentialities which are ever ready to manifest as realities projecting the
channels of Jeevas, the living entities. One who contemplates on his Self as
the Unmanifest never dies and death never overtakes him.
स होवाच गार्ग्यः,
य एवायं एवायमात्मनि पुरुष एतमेवाहं
ब्रह्मोपास इति;
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः मा मैतस्मिन्संवदिष्टाः,
आत्मन्वीति वा अहमेतमुपास इति;
स य एतमेवमुपास्ते आत्मन्वी ह भवति,
आत्मन्विनी हास्य प्रजा भवति;
स ह तूष्णीमास गार्ग्यः
॥ १३ ॥
13. Gaargya said,
“I
meditate on that embodied being in the Self of all.”
Ajaatashatru (stopped him before
he continued his discourse) said-
“Wait Wait, do not talk further!
(Brahman is not a thing to be
meditated upon as an object.)
I meditate upon myself as that
self.”
He who meditates upon him as such
attains the Self and his progeny also attains the Self.
Gaargya instructs the king that Brahman is the essence of
each embodied being.
However the king argues back saying that he is the very
essence that manifests as all these selves. Whatever he perceives is his own
self.
Gaargya remained silent.
Gaargya feels completely defeated. He understands that the
king is a true knower of Brahman. He is ashamed of his vanity. He stands in
front of the king humbled and miserable.
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
एतावन्नू एतावन्नू एतावन्नू इति,
एतावद्दीति;
नैतावता विदितं भवतीति;
स होवाच गार्ग्यः, उप त्वा यानीति ॥ १४ ॥
14. Ajaatashatru asked,
“Is
that all? Is that all? Is that all?”
Gaargya replied,
“That
is all”.
The king smiled and said,
“By
knowing this much, one cannot know Brahman.”
(Gaargya hung his head in shame. He understood that he had only verbal excellence but was not the
knower of Brahman.)
Gaargya (saluted the king humbly
and) said,
“Accept me as your student.”
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
प्रतिलोमं चैतद्यद्ब्राहमणः क्षत्रियमुपेयात्,
ब्रम मे वक्ष्यतीति,
व्येव त्वा ज्ञपियष्यामीति;
तं प्राणवादायोत्तस्थौ
तौ ह पुरुषं सुप्तमाजग्मतुः
तमेतैर्नामभिरामन्त्रयांचक्रे
बृहन् पाण्डरवासः सोम राजन्निति;
स नोत्तस्थौ; तं पाणिनाऽ
ऽपेषं बोधयांचकार
स होत्तस्थौ ॥ १५ ॥
15. The king said,
“A
Brahmin should not approach a KSHATRIYA (warrior clan) and plead for
instructions about Brahman.
(Anyhow,
since even the terms denoting the clans are just illusions created by the mind,
since ‘Self’ alone appears as you, me or any one, I do not find any harm in
teaching you. Come with me),
I will
make you understand everything.”
The skies were dark. Innumerable stars twinkled in the sky. The
city was silent. All the people were lost in deep slumber. The king and his student
walked silently for some time.
They
came to a sleeping man.
They saw a man sleeping soundly under a tree. The king
approached the sleeping man and said,
(The
king) Called him with these names-
“O
Great One, O white robed, O radiant Soma, wake up.”
The man did not move even a
little.
The king shook him till he woke
up. The man woke up.
(He saw the king standing in front of him. He stood up
immediately and saluted him.
The king gifted him some gold coins and sent him away.
He sat on a rock nearby and asked Gaargya-)
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
यत्रैष एतत्सुप्तोभूद्य एष विज्ञ्नानमयः
पुरुषः,
क्वैष तदाभूत्, कुत एतदागादिति;
तदु ह न मेने गार्ग्यः ॥ १६ ॥
16.
“You saw the man asleep!
So
tell me, this Purusha, the embodied one made of Knowledge alone, in the state
of deep slumber – where was he? From where did he come from when I woke him
up?”
Gaargya did not know that.
स होवाचाजातशत्रुः,
यत्रैष एतत्सुप्तोभूद्य एष विज्ञ्नानमयः
पुरुषः,
तदेषां प्राणानां विज्ञानेन विज्ञ्नानमादाय
य एषोन्तर्हृदय आकाशस्तस्मिञ्छेते;
तानि यदा गृह्णात्यथ हैतत्पुरुषः
स्वपिति नाम;
तद्गृहीत एव प्राणो भवति,
गृहीत्वा वाक्, गृहीतं चक्षुः,
गृहीतं श्रोत्रम्, गृहीतं मनः ॥ १७ ॥
17. Ajaatashatru said-
“This Purusha,
the embodied one in the state of deep slumber is of the nature of Knowledge
alone.
He absorbs
the functions of the senses through his own Knowledge-essence and sleeps in the
expanse in the heart (Brahman state).
When
this being absorbs them, he is said to be asleep.
At
that time, the organ of Praana remains withdrawn, organ of speech remains
withdrawn, the eyes remain withdrawn, ears remain withdrawn, and the mind
remains withdrawn.
(When awake, the
individual self or Jeeva absorbs all the knowledge brought to him through his
five senses of knowledge. He performs actions based on the knowledge brought by
the senses and reacts through his mind on the support of sense knowledge.
This is said to be the ‘Jaagrat’ state of the mind.
When asleep, the senses cease to function. They are absorbed
by the mind. All the thoughts, ideas, desires lie in a suspended state and the
individual self remains as the Supreme Self bereft of the perception of the
world. The world ceases to exist for him. It is as if the tree has reverted
back to the state of the seed. The manifested world reverts back to the state
of the unmanifest. Then the Jeeva is said to be in ‘Deep sleep’.
The element AAKAASHA is absorbed by the ‘mind-space’ and
this ‘mind- space’ remains absorbed in the CHIT or the conscious space.
The Principle of Praana which connects the world to the Mind
is withdrawn; the names and forms (VAAK) which are perceived as the world is
withdrawn; the seer who perceives the world is withdrawn (CHAKSHUSH); the
principle of ego, (sound) (SHROTRAM) which is the idea of differentiation is
withdrawn. The ‘mind’ which experiences the pain and pleasure in the world,
also is withdrawn.)
स यत्रैतत्स्वप्न्यया चरति ते
हास्य लोकाः;
तदुतेव महाराजो भवति, उतेव महाब्राह्मणाः,
उतेवोच्चावचं निगच्छति;
स यथा महाराजो जानपदान् गृहीत्वा
स्वे जनपदे यथाकामं परिवर्तेत,
एवमेवैष एतत्प्राणान् गृहीत्वा
स्वे शरीरे यथाकामं परिवर्तते
॥ १८ ॥
अथ यथा सुषुप्तो भवति, यदा न
कश्चन वेद,
हिता नाम नाड्यो द्वासप्ततिः
सहस्राणि हृदयात्पुरीततमभिप्रतिष्ठन्ते,
ताभिः प्रत्यवसृप्य पुरीतति
शेते;
स यथा कुमारो वा महाराजो वा महाब्राह्मणो
वातिध्नीमानन्दस्य गत्वा शयीत,
एवमेवैत एतच्छेते ॥ १९ ॥
स यथोर्णनाभिस्तन्तुनोच्चरेत्,
यथाग्नेः क्षुद्रा विस्फुल्लिङ्गा
व्युच्चरन्ति,
एवमेवास्मादात्मनः
सर्वे प्राणाः सर्वे लोकाः सर्वे
देवाः सर्वाणि भूतानि व्युच्चरन्ति;
तस्योपनिषत् –
सत्यस्य सत्यमिति;
प्राणा वै सत्यं तेषामेष सत्यम्
॥ २० ॥
इति प्रथमं ब्राह्मणम् ॥
18. 19. 20.
Gaargya questions the king about
the dream state.
The king replies:
“When
in the Svapna state, these are his worlds.
(In
the dream state, the mind remains active.)
The
person who is dreaming thinks that he is an emperor or a Brahmin, or a person
of a higher caste or a lower caste.
Like
an emperor moves anywhere in his kingdom accompanied by his people, this one
also roams about in the body as it pleases, accompanied by the Praanas.
“When
in deep sleep, it does not know anything.
It comes
back along the seventy two thousand nerves called Hitaa, which extend from the heart
to the pericardium (entire body) and remains in the body. It remains as
whatever form it was, happy like a baby, Brahmin or an emperor, each of whom is
always happy in their natural states.
The mind is equal
to an emperor with an ever expanding kingdom. It moves everywhere as it pleases
taking along the senses with it and roams about freely everywhere.
Then again suddenly
the mind becomes silent and is withdrawn inside the consciousness. It remains
dormant there without projecting any perceptions. The mind does not know
anything. Then again it comes back through the seventy-two thousand nerves
called HITAA, which extend from the center of the neural system to the whole of
the body and rests in the body. It remains as whatever form it was, happy like
a baby, Brahmin or an emperor, each of whom is always happy in their natural
states.
A child, a Brahmin who knows Brahman and an emperor who
rules the kingdom are always happy in their natural states. A man who wakes up
from the sleep feels happy because he remained in his natural state of the
Brahman when he was in deep sleep. But as soon as he enters the ‘Jaagrat’
state, ignorance envelops him and he starts feeling unhappy and anxious. But a
knower of Brahman is always in the natural state of Brahman whether he is
asleep or awake. He is without anxieties like a child; he experiences incessant
bliss as his own Self; he remains carefree like an emperor as he exists as
Brahman, the Supreme Lord of all that exists.
As a
spider moves along the thread produced by itself, as sparks rise from the fire
into all directions, all the Praanaas, all the worlds, all the gods, all the beings
arise out of this Self.”
Brahman alone appears as all the perceived phenomena. Like a
spider ejecting a liquid from its own mouth and building a web around itself,
the Supreme Self projects the world of appearances and acts as if bound. Like
the spider moving along the thread produced from its own mouth, the Supreme alone
projects this world of appearances and moves everywhere experiencing everything
as if He has become a different person with limitations. But there exists
nothing else but Brahman.
Brahman alone is all. There is no differentiation in
Brahman.
तस्योपनिषत्
सत्यस्य
सत्यमिति
प्राणा
वै सत्यम्
तेषामेष सत्यम् ॥
॥इति प्रथमं
ब्राह्मणम् ॥
This is the UPANISHAD; the Truth of the
Truth!
Praana is the Truth; this is the Truth of
That.
BRH.UP:
CHAP II: Section I
Brahman is the essence of all that exists.
Brahman is the Praana of everything that
exists.
Brahman is the Supreme Truth to be attained.
Brahman is the Truth of Truths.
Realization of oneself as Brahman alone is
the Truth.
This is the Upanishad, the path towards the
Truth.
This is the Upanishad which destroys the
ignorance.
ॐ
सहनाववतु सह नौ भुनक्तु
सहवीर्यङ्करवावहै
तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु
मा विद्विषावहै
ॐ शान्तिःशान्तिःशान्तिः
Let both of us be protected together.
Let both of us experience together.
Let us both raise the valor together.
Let the ever shining one be attained by us
both.
Let there be no cavalry between us.
No comments:
Post a Comment