[Advaita-l] Gita 13.20 question

[Jay Kumar]

Namaste to all.

The  fact discussed below, quoting Gita 13.20 can be explained with the following common phenomenon:

If there is a clean and  small mirror in a well-lighted room, there will be a distinguishable flash towards one direction from the mirror. We will be prompted by the ‘flash light’ though the ‘essential’ light is all over the room. We will glorify the shining mirror. Also sometime, some flying insects attracted by the flash-light try to hit and stink the mirror. Who is the experiencer in both these cases? Mirror or Light? , it is the mirror only, but we know only in the presence of the light, mirror ‘experiences’ the appreciation as well as the stinks. Is the light affected in any way? In fact, because of the light only, glorification and stinking happen and light is only glorified and ‘stinked’ (as the essential cause) still, light is unaffected, isn’t it? Similarly, remaining unaffected, ‘purusha’ is only everything and that ‘purusha’ is none other than  ‘You’ or ‘I’ or the questioner of this posting! In other words,  ‘Tat tvam asi’ or ‘Aham Bhramma asmi’. 

Just like the light and the mirror, ‘Satyam’ or ‘purusha’  is  of higher or absolute reality or ‘paramartikam’ and ‘mitya or ‘jiva’ is of a lower or empirical or objective reality or ‘vyyavakarikam’ respectively. This is one of the reason for the difficulty in comprehending the reality.  Thus, though the ‘jiva’ appears to be the locus of different types of experiences, the real cause of this experience is the presence of the single, sentient ‘all pervading’ (of higher reality) ‘ Satyam’ or ‘purusha’ only.   

Note : the example of light, mirror and the flash light should not be extended beyond the above contest. More discussions on my posting can be had through    my mobile because of my typing limitations. 

Regards,
S K Jayakumar  
Mobile : 9916494729

-----Original Message-----
From: Advaita-l [mailto:advaita-l-bounces at lists.advaita-vedanta.org] On Behalf Of V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l
Sent: 27 May 2018 23:00
To: A discussion group for Advaita Vedanta
Cc: V Subrahmanian
Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Gita 13.20 question

On Sat, May 26, 2018 at 5:42 AM, michael via Advaita-l < advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> Namaste
> Here's a selection from Gita 13.20 bhasya Gambhirananda tr.
> How to explain Purusha, jiva and bhoktr described as synonymous?
>

Purusha is the sentient being.  He, upon identifying with the not-self, body-mind complex, due to ignorance, is termed jiva. Since bhoga, experience, enjoyment, can happen only to a sentient being and not to an insentient being, Purusha is called bhokta, enjoyer/experiencer. Actually, the sentient Purusha is only the witness of the sukha, joy or duhkha, misery, that arise in the mind. That way he is called the cause of of enjoyership.

Trust this is clear.

regards
subbu

>
>
>
> "So far as the agentship with regard to these is concerned Nature is 
> said to be the cause, because of the same reason of being their 
> originator. As to how the soul can be the cause of mundane existence 
> is being stated: Purusah, the soul, the empirical being, the knower of 
> the field-all these are synonymous; is the hetuh, cause; bhoktrtve, so 
> far as enjoyership, the fact of being the perceiver; sukha-duhkhanam, 
> of happiness and sorrow-which are objects of experience, is 
> concerned."
>
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