[Advaita-l] Binary nature of Jnana

[Praveen R. Bhat]

Namaste Anand ji,

On Sat, Jul 2, 2022 at 7:52 PM Anand N via Advaita-l <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

>
> May I use an analogy here so that it's easier to understand for me. Is it
> like when one has just learnt to swim. Then there's
> the feeling that "yes" one can swim. But that feeling has to be explored by
> staying in the water
> and then getting comfortable there till one is confident that one is a
> swimmer.
> Is this process being considered as Jnananistatha?
>

I, for one, do not think that any analogy of a practice can compare to
something related to jnAna, especially brahmAtmajnAna, which is why the
Upanishadic example is of a prince lost amid a forest tribe as a kid. This
kid when found grown up and told that he is not a tribal forest-dweller,
but a prince, knows immediately so, but has a backlog of years of tribal
behaviour that goes over time. That is viparIta-bhAvanA being countered as
he gains niShThA in the knowledge that he is indeed the prince!

Yet, if I have to think of an analogy in practice, I wouldn't take
swimming, cycling, etc, but sleeping. If you know that you don't have to do
anything/think anything and you will naturally fall asleep, yet the mind
runs haywire with saMskAras, that would be akin to viparIta-bhAvana. The
more you withdraw from it all, its easier to sleep off. Of course, it is
too simplistic, but hopefully, it drives home the point. Then again, the
example can help much, if one focuses this withdrawn mind onto one's true
nature, instead of letting it sleep or waking up to the routine; that would
be nididhyAsa resulting in niShThA!

gurupAdukAbhyAm,
--Praveen R. Bhat
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