The Unreal Can Cause the Real

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ShrIgurubhyo NamaH

 

In Vedanta the Ultimate Absolute Truth Brahman is Advaitam. There is no

other entity apart from Brahman. The Mandukya Upanishad 7th mantra says

that this Absolute is 'free of the created universe',

'prapanchopashamam'. This is the very nature of the Truth. The word

'prapanchopashamam' is used unconditionally by the Upanishad. It does

not say: Brahman is 'prapanchopashamam' only on certain conditions being

fulfilled. It is Always so. The Veda, being a part of the world,

prapancha, too is included when the word 'prapanchopashamam' is used.

 

 

This very Upanishad says in the beginning: 'This letter Om is all this.

Of this a clear exposition is started. All that is past, present or

future is verily Om. And whatever is beyond the three periods of time

is also verily Om. (1). Shankara clarifies: And whatever else there is

that is beyond the three periods of time, that is inferable from its

effects but is not circumscribed by time, e.g. the Unmanifested and the

rest, that too is verily Om.

 

The next mantra 2 says: All this is surely Brahman. This Self is

Brahman....

 

Shankara clarifies: All this, that is all that was spoken of as but Om

in the earlier mantra, is Brahman.

 

 

Thus, the Veda too is not there in Brahman the Absolute in all three

periods of time. This would raise a question: The very Absolute can be

known only with the help of the Veda. And if the Veda itself negates

its existence in Brahman, during all three periods of time, how is valid

knowledge of the Absolute secured at all? How can the unreal produce the

knowledge of the Real? Since this question is important for Vedanta,

Shankaracharya, anticipating this question deliberates on this crucial

issue in more than one place in His commentary literature. Here is one

such instance, from the Brahma Sutra commentary (2.1.6.14)

`tadananyatvam ArambhaNa-shabdAdibhyaH'.

 

(G.Thibaut's translation found in

http://www.bharatadesam.com/spiritual/brahma_sutra/brahma_sutra_sankara_\

34153.php

<http://www.bharatadesam.com/spiritual/brahma_sutra/brahma_sutra_sankara\

_34153.php> )

 

// But how (to restate an objection raised above) can the

Vedânta-texts if untrue convey information about the true being of

Brahman? We certainly do not observe that a man bitten by a rope-snake

(i.e. a snake falsely imagined in a rope) dies, nor is the water

appearing in a mirage used for drinking or bathing 1

<http://www.bharatadesam.com/spiritual/brahma_sutra/brahma_sutra_sankara\

_34153.php#fn_286> .—

 

This objection, we reply, is without force (because as a matter of fact

we do see real effects to result from unreal causes), for we observe

that death sometimes takes place from imaginary venom, (when a man

imagines himself to have been bitten by a venomous snake,). 325 and

effects (of what is perceived in a dream) such as the bite of a snake or

bathing in a river take place with regard to a dreaming person.—

 

But, it will be said, these effects themselves are unreal!—

 

These effects themselves, we reply, are unreal indeed; but not so the

consciousness which the dreaming person has of them. This consciousness

is a real result; for it is not sublated by the waking consciousness.

The man who has risen from sleep does indeed consider the effects

perceived by him in his dream such as being bitten by a snake, bathing

in a river, & c. to be unreal, but he does not on that account consider

the consciousness he had of them to be unreal likewise.--(We remark in

passing that) by this fact of the consciousness of the dreaming person

not being sublated (by the waking consciousness) the doctrine of the

body being our true Self is to be 'considered as refuted 1

<http://www.bharatadesam.com/spiritual/brahma_sutra/brahma_sutra_sankara\

_34153.php#fn_287> .—

 

Scripture also (in the passage, 'If a man who is engaged in some

sacrifice undertaken for some special wish sees in his dream a woman, he

is to infer therefrom success in his work') (Chandogya Up. 5.2.9)

declares that by the unreal phantom of a dream a real result such as

prosperity may be obtained. And, again, another scriptural passage,

after having declared that from the observation of certain unfavourable

omens a man is to conclude that he will not live long, continues 'if

somebody sees in his dream a black man with black teeth and that man

kills him,' intimating thereby that by the unreal dream-phantom a real

fact, viz. death, is notified.--It is, moreover, known from the

experience of persons who carefully observe positive and negative

instances that such and such dreams are auspicious omens, others the

reverse. And (to quote another example that something true can result

from or be known through something untrue) we see that the knowledge of

the real sounds A. & c. is reached by means of the unreal written

letters.

 

……

 

Nor can it be maintained that such states of consciousness do not

actually arise; for scriptural passages such as, 'He understood what he

said' (Kh. Up. VII, 18, 2), declare them to occur, and certain means are

enjoined to bring them about, such as the hearing (of the Veda from a

teacher) and the recital of the sacred texts. Nor, again, can such

consciousness be objected to on the ground either of uselessness or of

erroneousness, because, firstly, it is seen to have for its result the

cessation of ignorance, and because, secondly, there is no other kind of

knowledge by which it could be sublated. //

 

Thus Shankara has Himself given a number of examples, both from

scripture and from daily-life to disprove the proposition that Sri

Madhva has advanced: `any mithya vastu has no jnAna sAdakatva

(capacity to establish the knowledge).'

 

 

 

Over and above what is contained in Shankaracharya's commentary, let

us take some more instances:

 

 

 

1. Trijata's dream: In SundaraKandam , Trijata's

dream is explained in detail. Dreams are premonition of events, to

pious persons who are spiritual in nature. This dream came true as

Anjaneya then caused devastation by setting Lanka on fire and Ravana

met his death after war with Rama. Trijata explaining her dream, as Rama

and Sita in Lanka in a chariot is well described in this as

Ihopayadha kakusthaha seethaya saha baryaya / Lakshmanena saha brathra

vimane pushpake sthtitha /(sarga 27 sloka 18).

Trijata dreamt Rama in such a grandeur.

 

1. In the MahAbhArta, Drona heard the words

`AshwatthAmaa hataH …' and concluded that his son was killed.

This jnAna got from a mithyA event resulted in his laying down arms

and get killed. This was the result intended by those who shouted

the words `AshwatthAmaa hataH …'

2. Now we can see an instance that is only too familiar to us to

reject it. In our south Indian households when a mother wants to

make the child listen and obey, she has a weapon called

`gumma', `gogga', `poocchaaNdi' etc. in various

languages. This `gumma' is a ficticious entity that no

mother has so far seen. Yet for ages she scares the child with the

name of this mithya entity and every child obeys. The mithya vastu

`gumma' brings about a `jnana' in the child that if

it does not obey, the `gumma' will catch hold or abduct or

harm. Thus, the mithyaa vastu is not only jnana saadhaka in the

child but also the saadhaka of the karma of feeding the child.

There is a famous Purandara Dasa song: `gummana kareyadire,

ammaa neenu….' where the Bala Krishna pleads with Yashodha

`O Mother, please do not summon that gumma'.

3. Scarecrow: A scarecrow is a device, traditionally a human

figure dressed in old clothes, or mannequin

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mannequin> , that is used to

discourage birds <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird> such as crows

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crow> from disturbing crops.[

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarecrow#cite_note-Shorter_OED-0>

(Wikipedia) . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarecrow

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarecrow>

 

The figure is not a real man; mithya. Yet the birds and crows take this

to be a person and keep off the field. A mithya object can be a jnAna

saadhaka which has a prayojana too.

 

5. I have seen in my young days milkmen bringing a cow for

milking, sometimes carrying a stuffed calf. The poor cow would have

lost its calf very young. Milkmen have concluded by anvaya/vyatireka

that the cow would yield more milk when the calf is present while

milking. So, when the calf has died, they stuff the carcass and carry

it and place it before the cow while milking. The cow even licks the

calf in all love as though the calf is alive. Thus, a mithya object can

be a jnana saadhaka and kArya upayogi.

 

 

 

6. Any model used for educational and other purposes is a mithyA

object. For example, in schools a globe or Atlas is used to teach

geography, etc. Even though it is only a drawing, a picture, and not

the real country, region, continent, yet it is capable of producing

`knowledge', jnana, in the students. This jnana is definitely

valid knowledge for it is not falsified later.

 

It is pertinent to point out here that Shankara has cited a similar case

in the Brahmasutra quote provided above. Supposing I know four Indian

languages. A friend promises to give me in writing a hymn for my use.

He knows that I am versed in the three languages. He chooses one to pen

the hymn. I read it and commit it to memory soon. Now, the song is in

my mind; no matter in which script it was written by my friend while

giving it to me. The `sound' is what matters and not the

script. Shankara says that the script, just a way of expressing a

sound, is unreal; the sound alone is real. This is because we can

`do away' with the script; the sound recorded intact in memory.

Thus the unreal script produces the knowledge of a real sound.

 

We can add wax models of fruits, etc. that a teacher uses in a

classroom. Students do get a valid knowledge from these make-believe

objects.

 

Films are a great example for this. Valid knowledge arises in students

who are shown films about any subject. While films are just light

projected over a screen, with no real objects there, yet valid knowledge

is produced from these mithya objects.

 

Puppet shows too produce valid knowledge about the theme presented.

This knowledge does not get falsified later.

 

7. There are several stories told to convey moral values. Many of

these are animal stories like the hare and the tortoise, the crow and

the jackal, the lion and the mouse, etc. An interesting story is woven

around these animal characters with a lot of dialogue and humour. The

listeners know even while listening that it is only a story; the animals

after all, do not converse the way it is presented. Yet, the moral is

conveyed even though the story-part is discarded. Thus, an unreal

object or even does produce valid knowledge.

 

 

 

8. Here is an instance from the field of science:

http://everything2.com/index.pl?node=Benzene

<http://everything2.com/index.pl?node=Benzene>

 

Benzene <http://everything2.com/title/Benzene> 's ring structure was

discovered in 1864 by German <http://everything2.com/title/German>

chemist Friedrich August Kekule

<http://everything2.com/title/Friedrich+August+Kekule> . He was inspired

by a dream he had, in which he envisioned organic molecule

<http://everything2.com/title/organic+molecule> s as snake

<http://everything2.com/title/snake> s, and he saw one of the snakes

biting its own tail. In his own words, from a speech he gave twenty-five

years later:

 

During my stay in Ghent <http://everything2.com/title/Ghent>

, I lived in elegant bachelor quarters in the main thoroughfare. My

study, however, faced a narrow side-alley and no daylight penetrated it

.... I was sitting writing on my textbook, but the work did not progress;

my thoughts were elsewhere. I turned my chair to the fire and dozed.

Again the atom <http://everything2.com/title/atom> s were gambol

<http://everything2.com/title/gambol> ing before my eyes. This time the

smaller groups kept modestly in the background.

 

My mental eye, rendered more acute by the repeated visions of the kind,

could now distinguish larger structures of manifold

<http://everything2.com/title/manifold> conformation; long rows

sometimes more closely fitted together all twining and twisting in

snake-like motion. But look! What was that? One of the snakes had seized

hold of its own tail <http://everything2.com/title/ouroboros> , and the

form whirled mockingly before my eyes. As if by a flash of lightning I

awoke; and this time also I spent the rest of the night in working out

the consequences of the hypothesis

<http://everything2.com/title/hypothesis> .

 

He published his paper concerning benzene

<http://everything2.com/title/benzene> 's structure less than a year

later to the Chemical Society of Paris

<http://everything2.com/title/Chemical+Society+of+Paris> , solving a

problem that had concerned modern chemistry for years. His findings

weren't only of great theoretical importance, but were useful in the dye

<http://everything2.com/title/dye> industry of the time, and Kekule was

offered an appointment to the University of Munich

<http://everything2.com/title/University+of+Munich> based on them

alone.

 

Thus, a mithya event like in a dream, can be a `jnAna sAdhaka'

and be valid in the waking.

 

Never stop dreaming <http://everything2.com/title/Never+stop+dreaming>

!!

 

9. The above instance has an additional feature useful for the

present discussion. Kekule says: As if by a flash of lightning I

awoke; and this time also I spent the rest of the night in working out

the consequences of the hypothesis

<http://everything2.com/title/hypothesis> . [ The impact of the dream

event is so strong even in the dream that it forces the person out of

the dream. He wakes up as if jolted. This is very common in fearful

dreams or nightmares. A dog or a bull chases the dreamer-subject and

the man dreaming lying on the bed wakes up suddenly and even sweats and

sometimes trembles for a few seconds.

 

1. Another instance, this one from the field of Medical science:

 

http://arthritis.about.com/od/researchandadvancements/a/powerplacebos.ht\

m

<http://arthritis.about.com/od/researchandadvancements/a/powerplacebos.h\

tm>

 

One Patient Stands Out

 

One patient stands out in the memory of Stephen Straus, M.D., for her

remarkable recovery, more than 10 years ago, from chronic fatigue

syndrome. <http://adam.about.com/reports/000007.htm> The woman, then in

her 30s, was " very significantly impaired, " says Straus, chief of the

Laboratory of Clinical Investigation at the National Institute of

Allergy and Infectious Diseases. " She had no energy, couldn't work, and

spent most of her time at home. " But her strength was restored during a

study to test the effectiveness of an experimental chronic fatigue drug.

 

" She and her parents were so thrilled with her recovery that they were

blessing me and my colleagues, " recalls Straus, the principal

investigator on that study.

 

Like many drug studies, the chronic fatigue medication trial was a

" placebo-controlled " study, meaning that a portion of the patients took

the experimental drug, while others took look-alike pills with no active

ingredient, with neither researchers nor patients knowing which patients

were getting which.

 

It's human nature, Straus explains, for patients and investigators alike

to try and guess in each case: Is it the real drug or a dummy pill? But

people shouldn't kid themselves, he says, that they can consistently

tell the actual drug from the sham by seeking out tell-tale signs of

improvement.

 

Placebo Pills

 

Turns out, the woman's quick turnaround from chronic fatigue occurred

after taking placebo pills, not the experimental drug. Straus says, " She

was amazed by the revelation that she'd gotten better on placebo. "

 

Research has confirmed that a fake treatment, made from an inactive

substance like sugar, distilled water, or saline solution, can have a

" placebo effect "

<http://arthritis.about.com/od/arthritistreatments/g/placebo.htm> --that

is, the sham medication can sometimes improve a patient's condition

simply because the person has the expectation that it will be helpful.

For a given medical condition, it's not unusual for one-third of

patients to feel better in response to treatment with placebo.

 

It is interesting to note that Shankara has included a similar case in

the Brahma Sutra quote provided above.

 

" Expectation is a powerful thing, " says Robert DeLap, M.D., head of one

of the Food and Drug Administration's Offices of Drug Evaluation.

<http://www.fda.gov/cder/office.htm> " The more you believe you're going

to benefit from a treatment, the more likely it is that you will

experience a benefit. "

 

Placebo-Controlled Drug Studies

 

To separate out this power of positive thinking and some other variables

from a drug's true medical benefits, companies seeking FDA approval of a

new treatment often use placebo-controlled drug studies. If patients on

the new drug fare significantly better than those taking placebo, the

study helps support the conclusion that the medicine is effective.

 

This is only a representative sample to prove that 'the unreal can

produce knowledge/effect that is real'. One can keep adding to the list

ad infinitum.

 

Om Tat Sat