Guest guest Posted July 15, 2002 Report Share Posted July 15, 2002 ============================================================= This article has been sent to you by Ram Chandran ( rchandran ) ============================================================= Source: thThe Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com/2002/07/15/stories/2002071500780800.htm) Miscellaneous - Religion God manifests as the creation CHENNAI JULY 15 .. The Supreme Being exists within and without all beings according to the scriptures; He constitutes all the insentient and the sentient beings in the creation. On the face of it this may seem contradictory to a layperson but it is not. The man of wisdom can understand this fact whereas to the ignorant one it remains beyond his grasp, as it is subtle. Sankara in his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita verse describing this concept notes that for the ignorant this knowledge remains elusive even in several births. The Ultimate Reality is posited as existence, consciousness and bliss and the supreme knowledge to be understood. As consciousness, the Reality cannot be known as an object; as bliss it is the highest of the four ends of human life Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. Liberation (Moksha) is a state of infinite peace and bliss. Hence for practical purpose name and form are necessary to understand the nature of Reality, as what is subtle cannot be known directly. But after grasping the truth one must retain the vision that name and form are only appearances and not to be taken as absolute; otherwise it will amount to missing the wood for the trees. In her discourse, Swamini Satyavratananda said the Supreme Reality is indivisible but appeared as divided into many. This is akin to space appearing divided inside many pots though it is a continuous whole. God is the supreme knowledge worth knowing and the Godhead sustains all. As creator He is called Brahma, as destroyer Rudra and sustains the creation as Vishnu. The scriptures describe the Reality as the light of all lights. This should not be understood literally. It denotes that it is because of Him that all other knowledge is possible. In this sense all human sense organs are lights in that they perceive objects in the world because of which knowledge can be gained. The mind and the intellect are also lights as they make knowledge possible. All these faculties borrow their capacity to give knowledge from the Supreme Reality. While these faculties are instruments of knowledge the Reality is self-illuminating and hence self-evident as the awareness "I am" in every individual. This awareness (consciousness) exists both in the state of ignorance about the nature of the Self (Atman) and also when Self-knowledge results. Hence the awareness "I am" is intrinsic to all human experiences and thought processes. Copyright: 1995 - 2002 The Hindu Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the consent of The Hindu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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