27 Dec 2015
Dr. Nikhil asked:
1) Gita says that Yoga is to have equality (Samatvam). Other widely quoted verses about equality from Gita are: i) Samaloshtashma kanchanah ii) Panditaah samadarshinah. Please explain these quotations also.
You say that we should even reject the scripture by analysis. But, our analysis is very much limited. The scripture given by God is of very high level. In such case, can we do this?
Shri Swami replied: Samatvam means equality between two items. Yoga means equality as said by the Gita. But, equality everywhere is not yoga. For example, one dollar is equal to Rs.60/-. Here also equality between two items exists. But, this is not the context of Yoga. Equality is a general word that can be used in any context, where equality exists between two items. The meaning of a word should be always confined to the limits of context.
The equality in enjoyment of happiness and unhappiness is the Yoga, which is the divine characteristic of God. Therefore, God is called as ‘Yogeshvara’ meaning the efficient example of Yoga. The fundamental reason for the creation of this universe is only enjoyment through entertainment as per the Veda (Ekaaki...). The universe created up to the level of inert energy and matter gives only enjoyment as we get by seeing a painting of natural scene. At this level the entertainment is not completed. Therefore, awareness in the form of drops, called souls, was created subsequently after the inert soil and inert plants as said in the Veda (Annatpurushah...). These souls, developed with mind and intelligence, appear as human beings. In the domain of these human beings, lot of multi-dimensional activity of awareness developed creating happy and unhappy scenes. The Lord is very much fascinated to this domain of human beings and hence even enters this domain to have full entertainment. It is like a spectator, very much fascinated towards dramas or cinemas entering the stage as an actor. While God observes these dramas or film shootings of the human beings and while He participates directly as an actor in these dramas or films, enjoys equally both scenes of happiness and unhappiness. This equality in enjoyment like the equal enjoyment of sweet dishes and hot dishes in meal is called as Yoga. The equality is in the enjoyment because enjoyment is uniform and homogeneous item of bliss, which is continuous since the scenes are continuous, though alter one after the other. This basic enjoyment of entertainment should not be overlooked because it is the fundamental reason for creating this universe. I am stressing on this point since this concept is misunderstood and misinterpreted by the scholars also. They take the equality in both the scenes of happiness and unhappiness and thereby to maintain neutrality without enjoyment of entertainment in both the scenes. If such neutrality is the divine characteristic of God, God should not have created this universe at all. He could have created the inert nature only and go on seeing it with constant neutrality termed as equality. Or, the best should have been not to create even the inert nature and keep in continuous neutrality always maintaining the equality of neutrality forever. Therefore, this interpretation is totally wrong and utterly foolish because the basic concept of the Veda for the creation is totally destroyed. Moreover, two different scenes of happiness and unhappiness cannot be equal. Day and night, summer and winter, knowledge and ignorance etc., are not equal since each is a pair of diagonally opposite items. There is no equality between such opposite items. The effects of these opposite scenes, which are happiness and unhappiness, are also not equal. Sweet dish is not hot dish. The sweet taste is not the taste of hot item. Hence, there is no equality between the items and also between the effects of the items. The equality is in the enjoyment of both the opposite tastes of opposite items. You can easily experience this concept while eating meals containing both sweet and hot dishes. You can also experience the concept in seeing a cinema or drama showing scenes of happiness and unhappiness. You can also experience this concept while acting as an actor in the drama or film shooting. This concept leaves you only when you forget that you are only an actor in a role and that all the story of the drama or cinema is not real and just imaginary. If you forget that you are only actor and start feeling that you are the role due to immersed feeling and total identification of yourself with the role, this concept is lost. This state of loss comes due to your self-ignorance. When you forget that you are the soul of pure awareness and identify yourself with the other side of the soul called as individual soul, which is a bundle of qualities due to your identification with the body, this concept vanishes. Hence, Shankara preached that you should identify yourself with the eternal soul (eternality with respect to the perishing body) so that you can capture the concept and be entertained with enjoyment continuously, which is the state of continuous bliss (Akhanda anandasvarupa). In such case only, you can enjoy this creation through entertainment just like God even though you are not creator, ruler and destroyer of this world. A servant can also enjoy the film like the producer-director-hero enjoys the film. This equality of the soul with God confined to this concept only is the monism or Advaita preached by Shankara. The head-ache taken by the boss in production and direction of cinema is unnecessary in this aspect of enjoyment. This unnecessary aspect stands for the assumed unreality of the creation. A concept, which is unnecessary, should not exist in your mind. World unreal for the soul also, though it is not actually unreal for the soul. The real world becoming unreal for the soul is called as Mithya, which means neither real nor unreal. It means real is assumed as unreal due to its neglected existence in view of the enjoyment as done by God. This confined aspect brings perfect monism between God and soul. The soul following this concept is called as Yogi fearing that the soul may slip from this concept due to its inefficiency. But, God will never slip and hence is called as Yogeshvara.
The two quotations given by you also apply to Yoga in which the equality is mentioned. But, beware, the equality in every context is not the context of yoga. In the first quotation, the equality between mud-stone and gold is mentioned. This means that you may live in a hut, the walls of which might have been constructed by mud and stone due to poverty. Alternatively, you may live in a palace constructed by gold due to your unassuming richness. Here, poverty and richness are not equal. The unhappiness due to poverty and happiness due to richness, which are the effects, are also not equal. But, the enjoyment through entertainment with unhappiness and happiness is always one and the same and is the uniform bliss. Similarly, in the second quotation, the Brahmin, who is a divine scholar of spiritual knowledge and a hunter eating dogs are not equal. In both, you may find the same awareness of soul and the same gross body made of five elements. But, the individual souls are different due to difference in qualities. The company with such a Brahmin (here the word Brahmin does not refer to the caste by birth, but refers to the good qualities and good actions) and the company with such a hunter are also not equal. The first leads to heaven and the second leads to hell. Heaven and hell are also not equal. The happiness in the heaven and unhappiness in the hell are also opposite. But, the enjoyment by entertainment in the heaven and hell is one and the same, if you are in the state of Yoga. Certainly, this is the most difficult aspect because it is continuous without any slip only in the case of God, the Yogeshvara. It is very difficult, no doubt, but it can be achieved through constant practice and detachment from the drama and your role as individual soul (Abhyasenatu... vairagyanacha... Gita). God preached about it since it is possible for any human being to achieve it with constant practice and detachment supported by the grace of God.
2) Is astrology based on theism or atheism?
Shri Swami Replied: There are three levels: a) theism, b) devilism and c) atheism on which the astrology is based.
a) Theism: Here, astrology is a part of spiritual knowledge only and the unimaginable God and the unimaginable power of God are accepted. Various types of unimaginable powers of God, which control the most complicated administration of this creation, called as the nine planets are just the employed servants of the Government of God. Here, the cycle of deeds is not disturbed by the knowledge of astrology because you are not sure to get the good result of astrology due to so many interfering factors between the cup and lip. Therefore, the cycle of deeds is not at all disturbed. Moreover, the fruits of deeds are only enjoyed in the upper worlds called hell and heaven. In this world, God treats the human being as a patient administering the fruit of any deed in the list that is suitable in every step. The planets are the presiding deities and not the inert planet worlds. These deities or their controlling deities are only the unimaginable powers of God, which cannot be isolated from God. Therefore, the administration implemented by these deities is not all different from the administration of God especially in implementing the necessary and required fruits of the deeds selected from the list. The worship of these presiding deities or their controlling deities is only the indirect worship of God. The specific food materials to be distributed to the poor people to pacify these deities impart the quality of sacrifice, which is most essential to please God. Hence, in this level, the astrology is amalgamated with the spiritual knowledge in the line of treatment of patient souls by the father-doctor-God.
Great sages like Parashara and Jaimini constituted the astrology. Jaimini, the founder of Purvameemamsa is misunderstood as an atheist since he denied the logistic scholars, who support the existence of God through inference and neglect the scripture. It appeared that as if Jaimini is opposing the existence of God. He only opposed the proof of existence of God by inference only. He was fond of establishing the existence of God through the scripture. How Jaimini, the student of sage Vyasa, the greatest theist, can be atheist? You should note that it is the Jaimini, who introduced the controlling deities of the presiding deities of the planets like Shiva for Jupiter, Vishnu for Saturn and Mercury, Skanda for Mars, Durga for Rahu, Lakshmi for Venus and Moon and so on. These controlling deities are different energetic forms of mediated God only.
b) Devilish: This is the level of demons, who agree the unimaginable power and do not accept the unimaginable God. A demon thinks that if he attains all these unimaginable powers, he can become God. God is negated and the unimaginable power is accepted. The same philosophy reflects in the astrology based on this level. Here God is negated and God is only the association of the nine planets that control the universe like a coalition government. The presiding deities of the planets are accepted here and not their controlling deities. In this level, astrologers become semi-atheists, who accept the unimaginable powers unlike an atheist and do not accept God like an atheist.
Such devilish astrologers were scolded by Jesus. The ethical scripture (Dharma Shastra) also recommends prohibition of such devilish astrologer to dine in the row of scholars while performing the annual ceremony of the departed parents.
c) Atheism: In this level both the unimaginable God and the unimaginable power are rejected. The presiding deities of the planets and their controlling deities are refused since the concept of unimaginable is totally refused by atheists. They take the planets simply as the inert planet-worlds. The relationship between the inert planet and the human life is refused. Obviously, it is correct. Hence, the subject called astrology itself gets vanished because the concept of unimaginable power, which is the basis of the astrology, disappears. The subject, astrology, itself disappears since the basis of the existence of astrology itself vanishes. Here, you should note that the planet in the astrology is not mere inert planet-world. It is only the presiding deity of the planet with unimaginable power. The atheist takes a wrong concept as the basis of astrology and rejects the astrology. This is like-if you want to beat somebody, first, call him as dog and then beat him! Beating the dog is allowed, but, the person is not the dog. Similarly, inert planet cannot control the human life. This point is accepted by us also. Our point is that planet means the unimaginable power of God called as the presiding deity of the planet. Such deity alone affects the human life through its unimaginable power. You do not accept this correct point. You are taking a false point, which is false in our view also and based on that, you are rejecting the astrology.
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