[Advaita-l] Topic for Discussion: What is Nirvikalpaka Samaadhi?
kuntimaddi sadananda
kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com
Thu Mar 10 00:11:28 CST 2016
Sunilji - PraNAms
What you said is true and that does not negate the shravana, manana and nidhidhyaasana from the jiiva's reference. Even the nirvikalpaka samaadhi also from jiiva's reference only. Hence what you mentioned still applies, along with what I wrote from the point of jeeva.
Now - regarding the aunupravesha statement. What does entering means? The all-pervading sat chit ananda cannot enter anywhere since it Brahman or infinite. Hence anupravesha really means formation of Chidaabhaasa at the individuals' level by saaskhee. Saakshee is differentiated from Brahaman just as local sunlight that falls on the moon vs the global sunlight - even though sunlight is undifferentiable. This differentiation is only for the purpose of teaching.
Formation of chidaabhaasa is there as long as the subtle body is there. Subtle body will be there as long as one has not realized and the BMI drops by videha mukti.
Hari Om!
Sada
--------------------------------------------
On Thu, 3/10/16, Sunil Bhattacharjya <sunil_bhattacharjya at yahoo.com> wrote:
Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Topic for Discussion: What is Nirvikalpaka Samaadhi?
To: "Sunil Bhattacharjya" <sunil_bhattacharjya at yahoo.com>, "A discussion group for Advaita Vedanta" <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>, "kuntimaddi sadananda" <kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com>
Date: Thursday, March 10, 2016, 12:13 AM
Namaste Sadaji,
Having created whatever is there in the universe the
Lord entered into that as Jeeva. Essentially he is the
consciousness. But as Jeeva he is the rider in the Chariot.
The Jeeva is sentient and the chariot is insentient, but as
long as the Jeeva rides the chariot the Jeeva thinks
he is inseparable from the chariot. That is why one can
think of Jeeva with the Chariot also, but not by those who
want to split hair. Through shastra and Guru he gets the
knowledge of the truth and through Manana and Dhyana
he imbibes that and becomes Jeevanmukta and finally he
leaves the Chariot (the Koshas) and becomes Videhamukta and
free. This I think is the entire Advaitic journey in a
nutshell.
Regards,
Sunil
--------------------------------------------
On Wed, 3/9/16, kuntimaddi sadananda <kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com>
wrote:
Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Topic for Discussion: What is
Nirvikalpaka Samaadhi?
To: "Sunil Bhattacharjya" <sunil_bhattacharjya at yahoo.com>,
"A discussion group for Advaita Vedanta" <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>
Date: Wednesday, March 9, 2016, 7:12 PM
Sunilji - PraNAms
Chitta - word was used in many ways - in Vedanta - it is
used in the sense of subtle body - that includes four
components, mind, intellect, memory and ahankaara. It is
used only to designate the memory part also. Sometime mind
is used to designate all the four. All are thought process
and names change depending on the function. Tatva bodha or
Vivikachudmani describes these - in nirvaana shatakam -
mano
buddhi ahankaara chittaani naaham...
All thoughts are inert. Hence inert thing cannot be a
jeeva.
Being a subtle material, the pure sat chit ananda can get
reflected by the subtle body- called chidaabaasa and by
way
of reflection of consciousness the subtle body also
becomes
conscious entity just as moon by reflection of sunlight
becomes a luminous body. Reflection of consciousness is
expression of life itself and jiiva notion arises due to
not
knowing that I am is the original consciousness.
Chitta vRitti - when we add vRitti - now we are referring
to
not just memory but to the total mind - as the absence of
vRitti - VRitti as discussed in the article - idam vRitti
and aham vRtti, etc for external perceptions. For internal
perceptions such as happy thought or angry or emotional
thoughts there is no indriya input.
Hari Om!
Sada
--------------------------------------------
On Wed, 3/9/16, Sunil Bhattacharjya via Advaita-l <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>
wrote:
Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Topic for Discussion: What
is
Nirvikalpaka Samaadhi?
To: "adviata-l" <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>,
"kuntimaddi sadananda" <kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com>
Date: Wednesday, March 9, 2016, 7:18 PM
Dear Sadaji,
To my understanding the "Chitta" is "Mind", "Ego"
and
"Intellec"t together along with the "Impressions or
Memory".
and some puranas have called the Chitta itself as
the
Jeeva.
The aim of "Cittavritti-nirodha" in yoga is to
control the
fluctuations in the Chitta and that finally comes to
the
thought-control in the mind. When the mind is still
and
there are no thought appearing in the mind, that
helps
the Chittaa to disconnect from the Prakrti.or Maya
and one
becomes "Jivanmukta". Eventually with the leaving of
the
five Koshas, the "Videhamukti" is achieved and there
is
one-ness with Brahman.
Regards,
Sunil K. Bhattacharjya
--------------------------------------------
On Wed, 3/9/16, kuntimaddi sadananda via Advaita-l
<advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>
wrote:
Subject: [Advaita-l] Topic for Discussion: What is
Nirvikalpaka Samaadhi?
To: "adviata-l" <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>
Date: Wednesday, March 9, 2016, 7:57 AM
PraNAms to all
I posed this question in both lists. There were few
who
discussed on this topic. I thank all of them who
participated in the discussion. I am presenting below
my
understanding for whatever it is worth.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am providing below my understanding. Some of these
aspects
are discussed exhaustively by Shree Vidyaranya swami
in
Panchadashi – which we are doing now. We are doing
now
the
10th Chapter. Just of info- The talks on the
Chapters
covered so far are available on Yu-tube under
Acharya
Sadaji.
Is Self-realization involves objectless-awareness as
some
subscribe.
The objectless awareness is nothing but pure sat
chit
ananda. It is always there - with the objects at the
very
substantive and without the objects as Brahman. It
is
paaramaarthika satyam. na vaaak gacchati na manaH -
no
speech can go there nor the mind - says the
scripture.
yato
vaacho nivartante apraapya manasaa saha. For pure
Brahman
-
there is no need of self-realization too, as it is
one
without a second. Jnaanam and ajnaanam etc., are all
at
vyaavhaarika level only. Hence self-realization
cannot be
object-less awareness, and one cannot reach there and
one
need not reach there too, since it is ever present
and
infinite.
Self-realization is by the mind only - Mind has to
recognize
or re-cognize that the existence that supports the
mind or
the consciousness that enlivens the mind is due to
the
pure
self that I am; since I say I am existent-conscious
entity
– I am, in fact, a self-existent and
self-conscious
entity.
Thoughts or vRittis that arise my mind are also
objects of
my awareness. As every thought (either due to
external
perceptions or internal perceptions) arises in the
mind -
as
- this is a pot-, or - this is chair,
simultaneously
or spontaneously subject thought - I am - as knower
arises
in the mind- Bhagavan Ramana calls this as aham
vRitti
centered on the knower, in contrast to idam vRitti
centered
in objective-thought.
Aham vRitit is not objective thought but the -
knower
thought, as -I know this is a pot - I know this is a
chair,
etc. Thus we have object-thought of idam vRitti as
in,
this
is a pot or this is a chair, etc.; and along with
this,
spontaneously a knower thought - I am the knower that
this
is a pot, etc ., arises. This aham vRitti is not
objective
thought, but subject-or knower vRitti, which also
owns the
knowledge as in - I am the knower of this thought.
Shifting the mind from the object thought to the
subject
vRitti is object-less awareness. It is not
elimination of
the thoughts but shifting the mind to the knowing
principle
because of which every objective thought is known. I
am
neither known or unknown but the very knowing
principle of
both known and unknown says kena up. To recognize
and
claim
I am that - without the objective thoughts or more
correctly
in spite of objective thoughts - requires a very
discriminative mind or mind with viveka. While
remaining within the upaadhi recognizing I am is the
pure
existence-consciousness that enlivens the upAdhi- it
is
called upahita chaitanya. To be able to shift my
mind
without getting lost in the objective thoughts that
floods
the mind, meditation on the single thought – as in
japa-
would help or even the meditation on the thought –
aham
brahmaasmi – once one has understood the truth –
brahma
sayam, jagan mithyaa and aham brahma eva na aparaH
though
Vedanta shravana and manana.
A similar analogy is looking at the moon (which is
actually
the presiding deity of the mind) and the moonlight
and
claim
that I am actually seeing the sunlight that is
illumining
the moon. I cannot really see the sunlight directly.
I
need
the moon to RECOGNIZE the presence of sunlight. What
I see
is only moon-light. I have to use viveka to shift my
attention from the moon light to that because of moon
has
the light. There is sunlight outside the moon too
but
I cannot recognize that since there is no object to
reflect
that light. Hence I need the reflecting object and
from
the
reflection recognize cognitively the original light.
Similarly I cannot see the objectless awareness but I
have
to recognize I am in the every objective awareness -
Hence
Kenopanishad says- pratibhoda viditam matam - It is
revealed
in every thought or experience as the knower or
experiencer,
which has to be conscious-existent entity since
non-existent
or unconscious entity cannot have any experience.
The thought-less mind happens normally in deep-sleep
state. In the deep-sleep state there is akhanda
ajnaana vRitti or constant unbroken thought of
ignorance
of
subject-object duality, as the mind is folded. Deep
sleep
state is not meditation since mind is folded and
cannot
abide in the knowledge of aham brahmaasmi.
Patanjali yoga talks about the chitta vRitti nirodha
–
or
shutting of all the thoughts – essentially a
thoughtless
mind or empty mind. As Swami Dayanandaji puts it –
an
ignorant thought full mind has now become ignorant
thoughtless mind. The ignorance remains. When the
mind
awakens with thoughts you are back to square one and
Patanjali yoga advocates dvaita only and not
advaita.
Hence
no knowledge of advaita occurs in that thoughtless
mind.
Nirvikalpaka samaadhi:
Nirvikalpaka samaadhi is described for the one who
has
studied Vedanta under a sampradaaya teacher and the
mind
has
grasped truth – aham brahmaasmi. Hence it is not a
substitute for the knowledge since muula avidya or
ignorance
of the self can only by knowledge of the self –
via
Vedanta pramaana. Even after gaining the knowledge,
if
such
a mind is not able to abide in that knowledge of
aham
brahmaasmi due to remnant raaga-dweshaas, one can
meditate
on the knowledge – aham brahmaasmi as the single
thought
without any other thoughts in the mind. That is
nirvikalpaka
samAdhI with the knowledge of aham brahamsmi single
thought.
Thus one slowly eliminates the remnant raaga dweshas
and
such a person even if he comes out of that
meditation, the
knowledge remains with him – now even with the
thoughts
– since he has understood that He is pure sat chit
ananda
and presence or absence of thoughts do not affect
him
since
they are mithyaa.
Hence what is needed is a) clear understanding of
the
truth
– brahma satyam, jagan mithyaa and aham brahmaasmi
–
that involves a) paroksha jnaanam of the jagat and
Iswara
and b) aparoksha jnanam via mahaavaakya vichaara.
–
There
are no short cuts here. Nidhidhyaasana is required
for
madhyama adhikaari who is not able to abide in the
knowledge
– aham brahmaasmi. For him, constant enquiry is the
best
approach, so that the mind does not get entangled
with the
day to day life in vyavahaara, which he cannot but
do, as
long as BMI is there. If he cannot enquire or do
vichaara
– then one can do meditation on aham brahmaasmi
with the
background knowledge via mahaavaakyaas.
If absence of thoughts is required for
self-realization,
then we are giving more reality to the thoughts or as
much
reality to the thoughts as the self. Ontologically
Self or
Brahman is of higher order of reality and thoughts
cannot
replace Brahman or the self for me to remove the
thoughts
to
recognize the self. What is required is detachment of
the
mind from the thoughts (as they involve ahankaara
and
mamakaara due to raaga and dweshas – I-ness and
my-ness
due to likes and dislikes) so that mind can shift
its
attention to aham vRitti from idam vRitti.
Some can even experience a thought-less state or
nirvikalpaka samAdhI. However without Vedanta
knowledge
such
an experience is neither needed nor necessary. What
is
required is clear understand of the truth – Brahma
satyam,
jagan mithyaa, aham brahmaasmi – knowledge –
though
Vedanta mahaavaakya vichaara, via shravana and
manana.
Meditation or even nirvikalpaka samAdhI is not a
pramaana
or
means of knowledge – one can have experience but
such an
experience is not needed for self-knowledge.
Meditation or
continuous enquiry is required for the mind to abide
in
the
knowledge gained via shravana and manana – that is
listening to the sampradaaya teacher on Vedanta for
prolonged length of time until the knowledge is
crytal
clear
and doubt-free. Even after gaining the knowledge, one
is
unable abide in the knowledge for them
nidhidhyaasana
including nirvikalpaka samadhi is recommended. The
later
ones are not alternatives to Vedanta shravana and
manana.
Hope this helps.
I want to thank all those who presented their view.
Hari Om!
Sada
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