More on bAdha, even if it causes lot of bAdha.

[Guest guest]

bAdha bodha

 

As I am slowly settling down in India for my six

months of swadhyaayanam, I noticed many mails on

‘baadha’. I decided to present my understanding in

stead of reading all those innumerable mails.

 

Here are simple rules on bAdha – or negation or

sublation.

 

1. That which is real cannot be negated. – In fact we

make a definition of real from this as that which can

never be negated (at any time) is real.

 

2. That which is unreal need not be negated – the

examples are like vandhyaa putraH or son of a barren

woman. Since there is no existence of such a thing,

there is no need to negate those that have no

existence or locus of existence at any time.

 

3. Only that which appears to be real but not really

real can only be negated. – What we are negating is

our assumption of reality to the transients – ‘aagaamo

paayino2nityaaH, tan tithikshasva bhaarata’ – all the

so-called human suffering arises due giving importance

to the transient dualities – seetam-ushNam,

sukham-duHkam, maanam-apamaanam, etc – heat and cold

at the body level, pleasure and pain at the mind level

and pride and insult at the intellect level, since

they are all transients and do not have any existence

in say deep-sleep state. Hence Krishna says

forbearance is required by recognizing their transient

nature and by understanding that which is changeless

in the transients.

 

Many philosophers only to the first and the

second and not to the third. Yet, many of them do

recognize that their ‘real’ can be of two types – that

which is changeless and that which changes. They may

not make distinction between the two, even though the

distinction is obvious. These changeless and changing

entities, advaita Vedanta calls them as paaramaarthika

and vyaavahaarika satyam, respectively.

 

Advaita s to the third one also as apparently

real but really not real.

 

Any change is a transformation and rules of

transformation are that there is material/energy

balance during the transformation which is conserved.

The conserved one is the substantive that remains the

same during the transformation therefore does not

undergo transformation. ‘baadha’ is therefore involves

‘transformation’ and that which never undergoes any

transformation has to be infinite and therefore only

‘real’. Absolutely infinite can only be one – that is

Brahman.

 

 

Krishna emphasizes this law of conservation in a

cryptic form B.G. II-16, in the famous statement,

naasato vidyate bhaavo naabhaavo vidyate sataH – that

which non-existent cannot come into existence and that

which exists cannot cease to exist. He applies this

law to the existence of the ‘jiivaatmas’ in the

beginning of his teaching ‘na tve vaaham …’ there was

never a time I was not there, nor you, nor these kings

in front of us… etc’.

 

Creation, is therefore involves a transformation of

something that is already there which never ceases to

exist.

 

We now introduce few additional rules to our list.

 

4. Only finite can undergo transformation.

Transformation involves change or baadha, and change

can be recognized only from the point of a changeless

reference. From this it follows

 

5. Brahman cannot undergo transformation since by

definition Brahman is infinite. Hence Brahman can

become absolute reference from which all changes can

be recognized. The last statement is ‘tongue in

cheek’, since Brahman being infinite, there cannot be

‘anything’ other than Brahman. Therefore, all

transformations, including the reactants and products

of transformations, have to be in Brahman. But there

is nothing in Brahman other than Brahman. If there

is, it is only seemingly present and that which is

seemingly present can be negated or it is baadhitam,

since it is seemingly present and not really present.

 

6. Hence all transformations in Brahman are only

apparent transformations and not real since no real

transformation can occur in Brahman or for Brahman.

vaachaarambhanam vikaaro naama dheyam - only name and

form but no real substance to trasformed reactants and

products other than Brahman which never undergoes any

transformation. Therefore recognition of their

apparent nature is the ‘baadha’ or sublation that is

required by those who think they are real and suffer

as a consequence of that mis-understanding.

 

Now we take this to the another extreme case.

 

Any transformation can be recognized only by a

conscious entity who himself does not undergo any

transformation – One who knows past (before

transformation) and future (after transformation) but

himself remaining as witness of the transformation

without undergoing any transformation – is the subject

I. Hence ‘I' cannot undergo any transformation since

if 'I' undergoes transformation, I need another

subject which does not undergo transformation to

recognize transformation of 'I'. Subject ‘I’ can

never become an object for transformation! Hence I

can never be bhaadhita vastu. I am conscious-existent

entity, similar to Brahman who is also satyam-jnaanam

and anantam, as per scriptures. I cannot undergo

transformation and neither Brahman can undergo

transformation. Hence scripture declares that I am

that Brahman – aham brahmaasmi.

 

Hence ultimate ‘baadha’ or sublation is negation of my

notion of what I am – by negating what I am not. I am

the subject and not an object for any transformation,

and any thing that transforms cannot be ‘I’.

 

Now applying rules 1 to 3, I am the only one that is

real and everything ‘else’ is only apparent and

negatable or sublatable since they are only apparent

and not really real. I am satyasya satyam –absolutely

real – never negatable since I am the subject who

subjects all objects to negation as I move from waking

to dream to deep-sleep states.

 

This process of negation is nidhidhyaasanam and has to

be done constantly until I am fully established in

myself as myself. In that understanding even the

‘baadha’ is itself sublated since there is nothing

other than I. Abidance in that clear understanding is

nidhidhyaasanam.

[Guest guest]

Sadaji :

 

Wonderful to know all is well at your end and now you are in Chennai

again - your favorite place - where you can hear swami

paramarthananji's lectures in person . you have given a very useful

presentation on bAdha but may i pleae request you to kindly go through

Shrimaan Subbuji's scriptural references on bAdha ( POST NUMBER

37622 ) ! You will find it very useful and enlightening ( it will be a

real 'bodha' for you! as it was for all of us ! )

 

Enjoy the Navaratri and the upcoming deepavali in chennai along with

your morning cup of coffee!

 

regards