[Advaita-l] vishayananda & brahmananda

[Br. Pranipata Chaitanya]

Hari Om! Pranaams!

Reproducing the notes of Swami Nikhilanandaji on the mantra based on baashyam. (©  Swami Nikhilananda, Ramakrishna Center, NY.)

The laughing, rejoicing etc, are all mental, created by the mere will of the Self. The Self enjoys these pleasures as an inward spectator only, without identifying Himself with either pleasure or pain. He sees them with His divine eye. He perceives in all things His Self only. What from a relative standpoint are called objects, are to Him Brahman only. The statement that all the desires of the Self and all the thoughts of the Self come true (8:7:1) and that the knower of the Self laughs,plays, rejoices,etc,(8:12:3) and that he weilds unlimited freedom (7:25:2) and other similar statements describing the glories and powers of the Self, do not conflict with the statement that It is free of all attributes, such as seeing, hearing etc. The latter statement is made from the standpoint of Pure Consciousness, which admits of no duality, but the former is made from the relative standpoint, when the Self is regarded as the innermost essense of all phenomenal objects. What is true of the Self is also true of the liberated Soul who  has realised his oneness with It. The liberated soul, too, ad Pure Consciousness, does not see, hear, or touch any object, because objects do not exist as such, in reality.  But fron the relative stand point he appears to enjoy food, drink, human company, etc, though even then he does not forget his true nature.

> Date: Sat, 2 Apr 2011 19:37:47 -0700
> From: sgadkari2001 at yahoo.com
> To: advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org
> Subject: [Advaita-l] vishayananda & brahmananda
> 
> Namaste,
> 
> Before this thread gets further diverted just would like to remind that the 
> discussion
> on this started with respect to chAndogya 8.12.3. indra has spent three terms 
> of 32 years each to learn about waking, dream and deep sleep states. Now after
> another term of 5 years prajApati instructs him apparently about the fourth 
> state.
> The disturbing thing here is - why is it that the text here talks of the fourth 
> state in a 
> 
> language that is normally used to describe the dream state? As mentioned in my 
> previous post this becomes all the more important because of the direct 
> connection 
> 
> of this part of the chAndogya with gItA 15.16-18.
> If this section of the chAndogya is not understood to one's satisfaction along 
> with 
> 
> the connection to gItA, one should suspect that possibly the most important part
> of gItA remains unclear.
> 
> Regards,
> Shrinivas
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> 
> In the case of the Soundarya Lahari, too, by extending the logic of the Gita
> 6th chapter verse, it is not Atma jnAnam that the particular upAsana of Devi
> that is taught there. It could be some preparatory steps to it.  Even those
> who perform saguNa dhyAnam and go to Brahmaloka will have these bhogas
> there.  The Chandogya mantra and the bhashya and the vyAkhyAna-s hint at
> this. They separate nirguNa jnAnam and saguNa jnAnam.
> Regards,
> subrahmanian.v
> 
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