Guest guest Posted January 25, 2002 Report Share Posted January 25, 2002 advaitin, "raghavakaluri" <raghavakaluri> wrote: > I burst out laughing when I read your "neti, neti" post -- or is it "fair" to say that I read something that was not? <g> Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 27, 2002 Report Share Posted January 27, 2002 Namaste: We had an interesting discussion on the subject - Neti, Neti. Here is my understanding of the basics behind this terminology. The 'Neti, Neti' logic is quite similar to the mathematical approach of reducio-ad-absurdum. What it really says is the following - if we remove all the absurdities, what remains is necessarily from absurdity. For example to prove a mathematical theorem, start with the exact opposite and if that is proven wrong, it implies, the original theorem is right! Some examples of the application of Neti, Neti: Suppose we want to get pure water, then we should remove all impurities. Impurity in the 'pure water' can be perceived by all sorts of impurities such as odor, taste, color, particles, etc. Our perception of 'purity' is only derived from our limited knowledge on the impurities of water. The perception of purity is subject to individual's knowledge of the impurities that he/she is aware. The Sanskrit Dharma can't be defined but plenty of Adharmas can be defined and understood. Dharma is that which is not 'adharma!' What is Truth? We know what is false and they become 'lies' and Truth can realized by negating all lies! What is real? We can identify all that is unreal and only by discarding all that is unreal, we can realize the 'real.' In conclusion, I believe that the Vedic sages are great mathematicians and they seem to have applied the mirror image of reducio-ad-absurdum to articulate their case. warmest regards, Ram Chandran Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 28, 2002 Report Share Posted January 28, 2002 advaitin, "ramvchandran" <rchandran@c...> wrote: > What is Truth? We know what is false and they become 'lies' and Truth > can realized by negating all lies! > > What is real? We can identify all that is unreal and only by > discarding all that is unreal, we can realize the 'real.' > Namaste. Thanks for the clarification. Brahma-Sutra 3.2.22 indeed states:- 'Not this, not this' in Bri.Upanishad 2.3.6 denies the gross and subtle forms of Brahman given in Br.Upanishad 2.3.1 and not Brahman Itself. Regards, Raghava Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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