Upadesha Sahasri (Verse Section 3)

[Guest guest]

Namaste all,

 

Here is another short section that continues with

reflection on the way of negation; that the texts that

describe Brahman as 'not large etc'are there to

eradicate false superimpositions on Reality.

I will be away in the mountains of Ireland for a

couple of weeks and then 'on the road' in Scotland for

a week more, so will post the fourth section after

April 7th.

 

Best wishes

 

Ken Knight

 

CHAPTER III

 

IShvarAtmA

(The Lord ( IShvara) as One’s True Self)

 

(Note. In Shankara’s writings the terms IShvara and

Brahman are sometimes used synonomously)

 

1. The aspirant cannot know that he is Brahman if It

be different from the Self. (It then contradicts the

Shruti). But if he has the conviction that he, the

Self, is Brahman (there is no contradiction to the

Shruti). This is (right) Knowledge which destroys

Ignorance.

 

The above is Swami Jagadananda’s translation but both

Alston and Mayeda have a slightly different phrasing

which I think is important. They write respectively:

‘If the Lord were not one’s true Self, it would be

wrong to meditate on ‘I am He’. ‘If the Lord is

non-Atman one ought not to dwell upon (the knowledge)

I am He.’

 

2. What would be the use (of the description by the

Shruti) of the qualities, ‘not large’ (Br.Up. 3.8.8)

etc. if they were the qualities of one other than the

Self, it being not (Br.Up. 1.4.7) an object of search?

But if Brahman (with these qualities) is the Self the

ideas such as largeness, smallness, etc. are negated

from the latter.

 

3. Know, therefore, that the Shruti, ‘not large’ etc.

is meant to negate the false superimposition (of

largeness, smallness etc. on the Self) as would be a

description of a void if it were meant to negate those

qualities from one other than the Self.

 

4. Moreover, the saying, (Mu.Up.2.1.2) ‘devoid of the

vital force, devoid of the mind, and pure’ would be

meaningless if these qualities were meant to be

negated from one which is other than the individual

Self, the aspirant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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