Sridakshinamurtistotram (Part VIII – c)

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Sridakshinamurtistotram

(Part VIII – c)

sadA'sheSha-hR^id-vaag-vapuH-karma yeShA-

maduShTAtiyuktam hitArtham parArdhyam |

guRun-tAn-vipAkAshaya-kleshakarma-

aparAmR^iShTapUrNAn-kr^ipAbdhIn prapadye ||

(I seek refuge in my Guru, an ocean of mercy, all of whose mental,

verbal and bodily acts are ever faultless, thoroughly appropriate,

beneficial and nonpareil ad who is the infinite one untouched by

Kleshas (ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion and clinging to

life), actions, consequences of actions and mental impressions.)

(The above is a verse composed by a devotee in reverential obeisance

to his Guru)

 

A word about Recognition, pratyabhijna:

 

We saw that pratyabhijna pertaining to even an external object

establishes the abiding nature of the experiencer. This being so,

the pratyabhijna relating to aham, the experiencer himself, can very

well be expected to throw more light about the nature of aham. The

consciousness of something as having been experienced in the past,

itself constitutes the pratyabhijna relating to aham. Being present

both at the time of the past experience and subsequently at the time

of the experience of the remembrance, the individual recollects the

thing which has persisted in himself in the form of a samskara. This

takes the form, 'the same I who had the experience of the object

formerly, am now remembering it'. The Sutrabhashya 3.3.30.54,

2,2,4,25 and 1.3.5.19 mention this with illustrations.

Maya and Vidya:

The way in which the never-vanishing experiencer is carefully

separated from the vanishing aspects of experiences is mentioned by

the Manasollasa thus:

It is the pramatr-s, the percipients, that 'disappear' in such

states as deep sleep and dissolution. This is spoken of as such

because of the disappearance of the upadhis pertaining to the pramatr-

s. This disappearance is due to the veiling Maya and the

manifestation is due to the unveiling by Vidya. Pointing to this,

the Manasollasa (VII-16) says that it is indeed pratyabhijna, the All-

witnessing Consciousness, which underlies all pramanas – all means of

knowledge, valid or otherwise. The Kenopanishad (2.4) and the

bhashya thereon throw a flood of light on this subject:

4 Brahman is known when It is realised in every state of mind;

for by such Knowledge one attains Immortality. By Atman one obtains

strength; by Knowledge, Immortality

The term bodha here stands for cognition ie., the mental mode that

reveals an object. He for whom each and every one of these

cognitions is an object of direct perception, who is of the nature of

Pure Consciousness alone and who is indicated by these very

cognitions as being present in identically the same manner in all of

them, without being conditioned by them, is Atman; there is no other

way for knowing the Inner Atman. Thus 'knowledge' of Brahman in this

manner as the very essence of every cognition is Samyagdarshana, the

true knowledge of Brahman. It becomes established thereby that

Brahman, the Witness of all cognitions, is of the nature of

Consciousness, subject to neither birth nor death, Eternal, of

absolutely pure nature, the very Atman, without any attributes, and

the One in all being, as the akasha in a pot, a hill and a cave,

there being no differentiating feature. (unquote)

The Panchadashi (I-6,7,8) also echos this truth in a very logical

manner:

6. This consciousness (in the deep sleep state) is indeed distinct

from the object (here, ignorance), but not from itself, as is the

consciousness in the state of dream. Thus in all the three states the

consciousness (being homogeneous) is the same. It is so in other days

too.

 

7. Through the many months, years, ages and world cycles, past and

future, consciousness is the same; it neither rises nor sets (unlike

the sun); it is self-revealing.

 

8. This consciousness, which is our Self, is of the nature of supreme

bliss, for it is the object of greatest love, and love for the Self

is seen in every man, who wishes, `May I never cease to be', `May I

exist forever'.

 

Pramanas in respect of Pratyabhijna:

Pratyabhijna was seen above as verily the Mahavakyartha. There are

pramanas to authenticate this:

The Bhagavadgita XIII.2 says: And do thou also know Me as Kshetrajna

in all the kshetras, O Bharata!.

And in IX 5, the Lord says: Nor do those beings dwell in Me; behold

My divine Yoga!

There is the pratyaksha pramana, the experience of the enlightened

as 'Brahman am I'.

The Guru's instruction: 'That thou art'.

 

Inference such as: jiva and Ishvara are not different in reality, for

they are of the same nature as made known by Srutis, 'Satyam, Jnanam'

(Existence, Consciousness) and 'prajnaanaghana eva' (verily the Pure

Consciousness of one consistency) and between them no difference can

be traced but for the association with upadhis as in the case of

akasha.

The lines: bAlyaadhiShvapi jAgradaadiShu tathA sarvAsvavasthAsvapi

vyAvR^ittaasvanuvartamaanam of the hymn has been dealt with in great

detail in order to fully expose the depth of meaning contained

therein. To speak of the Truth in terms of parlance, It is the One

Primal Cause that takes up various stances right till the end, the

ultimate effect, as the Sutra bhashya 2.1.6.18 already quoted shows.

Because of the association with these 'states' which are superposed

on It, the Reality, Brahman, is spoken of variously depending on:

1. The aspects pertaining to the states such as sentient and

insentient, cosmic and individual, microcosmic and macrocosmic,

subject and object,

2. States in which one of the three gunas is prominent,

3. The triad of states – the waking, dream and deep sleep (these

aspects are found mentioned in the Sruti, the Rudradhyaya, the

Purushasukta, the Gita (X,XIV), other smritis, Puranas, sahasranamas

etc.) and

4. Others mentioned in this hymn itself viz., space, time,

jivanmukti, pramatritva, different subjective states by the

identification with the body, the pranas, the senses and the Sakshi,

subsidiary states in the waking itself like childhood etc., the

cause, the effect, servant, master, the disciple, the preceptor, the

father, the son etc., the eight-fold forms (Murtyashtaka) such as the

earth, the water, the fire, the air, the akasha, the sun, the moon,

the jiva and Ishwara, as also Sarvaatmatva which term is to be

understood in the same way as the terms Turiyavastha (Mandukya

Upanishad), Paramarthaavastha (Sutrabhashya 2.1.6.14) etc.

The above, in essence, is a near-exhaustive list of the

various 'states' that Brahman assumes, in other words, are

superimposed on Brahman. A sample is found in the Aitareyopanishad

3.1.3:

 

He is Brahman, He is Indra, He is Prajapati; He is all these gods;

He is the five great elements—earth, air, akasa, water, light; He is

all these small creatures and the others which are mixed; He is the

origin—those born of an egg, of a womb, of sweat and of a sprout; He

is horses, cows, human beings, elephants—whatever breathes here,

whether moving on legs or flying in the air or unmoving. All this is

guided by Consciousness, is supported by Consciousness. The basis is

Consciousness. Consciousness is Brahman (Prajnanam Brahma).

(The Bhashya on the above mantra could be referred for a detailed

discussion on this)

 

A word of advice to the seekers:

 

In passing, it may be remarked that in striving for knowledge it

should be remembered that all effort must be geared to realize this

Consciousness as one's very Self, and merely acquiring information

about idam, the object of knowledge, however expansive it may be, is

not 'acquiring' knowledge at all. The wealth of details pertains

only to the various aspects of idam or its entirety which are merely

the various states superposed. This must always be remembered. Thus

we see that wherever there is a state, there is invariably some

upadhi or the other associated with Consciousness thereby limiting

it. Where there is no object, there is no state. The Turiya, the

highest ecstatic state, therefore, is not a state of Self; it is Self

Itself, for no assignable object is present. A state is defined as

the phase that is transcended, passed over eventually; Self cannot

pass out of Its own nature.

The Panchadashi (X – 9 to 15, 23,24,25) gives a clear picture of the

method of recognizing the Kutastha, the Witness Consciousness, from

the maze of objective experiences that we undergo:

9. That consciousness which reveals at one and the same time the

agent, the action and the external objects is called `witness' in the

Vedanta.

 

10. The witness, like the lamp in a dancing hall, reveals all these

as `I see', `I hear', `I smell', `I taste', `I touch' as pieces of

knowledge.

 

11. The light in the dancing hall uniformly reveals the patron, the

audience and the dancer. Even when they are absent, the light

continues to shine.

 

12. The witness-consciousness lights up the ego, the intellect and

the sense-objects. Even when ego etc., are absent, it remains self-

luminous as ever.

 

13. The unchangeable witness is ever present as self-luminous

consciousness; the intellect functions under its light and dances in

a variety of ways.

 

14. In this illustration the patron is the ego, the various sense-

objects are the audience, the intellect is the dancer, the musicians

playing on their instruments are the sense-organs and the light

illumining them all is the witness-consciousness.

 

15. As the light reveals all the objects remaining in its own place,

so the witness-consciousness, itself ever motionless, illumines the

objects within and without (including the operations of the mind).

23. Whatever form the intellect imagines, the supreme Self illumines

it as its witness, remaining Itself beyond the grasp of speech and

mind.

 

24. If you object `How such a Self could be grasped by me ?', our

answer is: Let it not be grasped. When the duality of the knower and

the known comes to an end, what remains is the Self.

 

25. Since Atman is self-luminous in its nature, its existence needs

no proof. If you need to be convinced that the existence of Atman

needs no proof, hear the instruction of the Shruti from a spiritual

teacher.

 

Experience of Atman as It is – A Foretaste – 'Fleeting Samadhis':

In the Yoga-vaasishtha (3.7.18,19,20), there is a description on how

one can secure the experience of the Atman as It is, without any

taint, the realization of which Atman will enable one to get over

ignorance in its manifold aspect.

 

On the vanishing of the vritti of the mind, of the form of knowledge

pertaining to an entity and the arising of a similar vritti as

pertaining to another entity, in the interval between them, however

small, it is the Chidaakaasha, Immutable Witness of the interval,

which shines of Its own accord without any objective reference. So

will it be said while delineating the seven stages and so has it been

said previously, in the Panchadashi sloka VIII.21. This state is

secured by the conviction of the non-existence of the universe, and

not otherwise. Again, consideration of the dream state points to the

fact that the Consciousness is distinct from the body and other

adjuncts, that It is Self-effulgent and that It is untainted.

Consideration of the deep sleep state points to the non-dual nature,

unfailing effulgence and unalloyed Blissful nature of this

Consciousness. The Anubhutiprakasha of Sri Vidyaranya (18 – 24, 25)

points to this.

 

In this connection, much benefit could be derived by studying the

dialogue between Sage Ushasta and Yajnavalkya occurring in the

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (V), the famous sentence being: 'Yat

sAkShaadaparokShaad Brahma, Yah sarvaantaraH' meaning that Self

which is innermost and within all, that is fit to be identical with

Brahman which is immediate, direct. The relevance of this Sruti

vaakyam to the particular portion of the Hymn that is in

consideration is of particular interest. The line of the hymn:

vyAvR^ittaasvanuvartamaanamahamityantaH-sphurantam sadaa |

The concern here is the direct, immediate realization of Brahman-

Atman. It is the realized one, the Guru, that is offering the

instruction. Atman is by His very nature ever Self-effulgent, not

requiring any pramana to identify it. He is also ever immediate

being the very Self as indicated by the words aham, svaatmaanam. All

else inclusive of the pramanas (instruments) belong to the category

of the seen, drishyam, saakshya, those that are finite and disappear –

vyaavrittaasu. The latter are superposed on Brahman-Atman, the

Substratum, to the intrinsic shine of which they owe their apparent

shine – anuvartamaanam-antaH-sphurantam. As the Substratum of the

changing universe that is superposed, It is referred to

as 'anuvartamaanam' in all the avasthaas, as these words, as

also 'antaH-sphurantam sadaa' indicate that It is Shine without the

limitations of space, time and object. Thus it is the Sat-chid-

aananda Brahman and as the very Self of the individual seeking It, It

is referred to by the words 'aham', 'svaatmaanam'. The use of these

expressions: (1)vyAvR^ittaasvanuvartamaanam and (2) ahamityantaH-

sphurantam sadaa in apposition is in the manner of the celebrated

Mahavakya 'aham Brahmaasmi'; the former (1) here indicating the

Brahman and the latter (2) indicating the 'aham'.

 

Again, the phrase vyAvR^ittaasvanuvartamaanam shows that It is the

Saakshi which shines directly and illuminates without mediation –

saakshaat. The mention, in the hymn, of the various states indicates

the way to find the 'aham', for these states occur for the individual

(childhood, waking, etc.) The aham has to be freed of these states

and this process, the viveka, culminates in the salvaging of the idam-

free aham, the pure Consciousness. The analogy in this respect is

this: One is made to realize the luminous orb as the Sun by

instructing in the first instance as 'the Sun illuminates' (that is

the Sun as illuminating some objects) and then as 'the Sun shines'

(the sun just shining in its own nature and not willfully

illuminating something).. To sum up, the Vivekachudamani verses are

helpful in grasping the teaching contained herein:

400. In the One Entity devoid of the concepts of seer, seeing and

seen – which is changeless, formless and Absolute – whence can there

be any diversity ?

 

401. In the One Entity which is changeless, formless and Absolute,

and which is perfectly all-pervading and motionless like the ocean

after the dissolution of the universe, whence can there be any

diversity.

464. There is only Brahman, the One without a second, infinite,

without beginning or end, transcendent and changeless; there is no

duality whatsoever in It.

466. There is only Brahman, the One without a second, which is within

all, homogeneous, infinite, endless, and all-pervading; there is no

duality whatsoever in It.

Some more aspects concerned with the method of teaching by the Guru,

verily Lord Sridakshinamurti, will be considered in the sequel.

 

(end of Part VIII – c)

(to be continued)