15 Dec 2003
LAKSHMANA GITA: I II III IV V VI
Lakshman:
Oh! Datta Swami! You are Lord Datta
Kindly open my eye of knowledge
Shankara told that Jiiva is Ishwara
If Avidya of Jiiva is removed.
Swami:
Avidya means ignorance of the soul
When Avidya is removed, the soul realizes
That it is water, which is common with Ishwara
Water is common in the drop and in the ocean.
Avidya means the ignorance of qualitative aspect
Maya means the ignorance of quantitative aspect
Maya exists as long as the space exists
Quantity is based on the space.
A drop occupies little space
The ocean occupies large space
As long as space is existing
Both drop and ocean exist.
When the Advaita philosopher is alive
Space exists and so the quantitative difference
When he dies also, space still exists
Since his son here is seeing the space.
The son cannot say that the space disappeared
For his father who died
Did the dead father tell his son about the space?
How can the son tell that unless he dies?
Space never disappears, be sure
Maya never disappears, Ishwara is eternal
This means, the ocean will never vanish
Ishwara called Mayi always exists.
Mayi means Brahman possessing Maya
Maya means Prakriti as per the Gita
Three qualities and five elements are Prakriti
Space is one of the five elements.
Ishwara can never disappear
Therefore, space also can never disappear
Maya is eternal and so Mayi is eternal
Jiiva is also eternal as quantity is eternal.
What is the proof for the awareness also
To be present when space disappears?
Nobody and nothing exist in absence of space
So, the awareness also disappears.
Awareness is the characteristic of a living being
Do you have awareness existing independently?
Awareness of awareness cannot exist
When awareness itself disappears.
Therefore, Brahman is not awareness
Because Brahman is beyond space
Shankara called awareness as Brahman
And told that you are Brahman.
This is like a person be called a dog
And beat him as you can beat a dog
The word Brahman means only ‘Great’
Awareness is great, let it be called Brahman.
All this was done by Shankara at that time
To turn Buddhists who say everything is nothing
Shankara asked ‘Do you exist to grasp that nothing’?
Buddhist replied ‘Yes, I exist to grasp that nothing’.
Shankara asked ‘When you exist, how everything is nothing?
You are the awareness called as Brahman
Therefore, accept that Brahman which exists’
Buddhist thought that He is Ishwara and accepted.
Yes, Buddhist now says that Brahman exists
That was sufficient for Shankara in those days
And atheist says that Brahman exists!
He thinks that Brahman is Ishwara or God.
Shankara told that when Maya is removed
Both Jiiva and Ishwara disappear, Brahman remains
When space disappears, drop and ocean disappear
For your information water, the Brahman also disappears.
Let Brahman also disappear with Maya
Because we called awareness by the name Brahman
Actually, awareness is not at all Brahman
Since Brahman is beyond space and imagination.
Awareness and awareness of awareness
Both are imaginable words
So both are not Brahman
Brahman is beyond imagination.
All this Maya is a play of Shankara
To bring the Buddhist to the right path
For a Buddhist everything is nothing
And so God is also nothing for him.
Shankara Himself knows the truth
When He took bath in the sea at Puri
He says ‘Oh! Lord! Qualitative difference
Does not exist between You and Me.
But the quantitative difference exists between us
I belong to You, You do not belong to Me
A wave is contained in the sea, no doubt
But the sea is not contained in a wave’.
(Satyapi bhedāpagame Nātha tāvakīno'ham na māmakastvam
Sāmudro hi taraṅgaḥ kvacidapi na hi samudraḥ tāraṅgaḥ - Shankara)
The disciple of Shankara thought that he is Ishwara the ocean
The disciple is only Brahman, the water as per Shankara
Brahman is confused as Ishwara also
Brahman is both Ishwara and jiiva
As the water can be both ocean and the drop.
Shankara swallowed the molten lead
To show that He is the Ishwara also
Who swallowed that Haalahala poison
The disciple could not touch the molten lead.
The Advaita philosophers never touch
Shankara’s prayer at Puri and about the molten lead
They simply leave these two incidents
Because they are very inconvenient for them.
Shankara is the ocean contained in the drop
He is the human incarnation of Shiva by the power of Maya
He is both water and the ocean
He can say ‘I am Brahma’ and ‘I am Ishwara’
He appears as a drop like jiiva externally.
A jiiva can say ‘I am Brahma’ and ‘I am jiiva’
Since he is water qualitatively and drop quantitatively
He can never say that he is Ishwara
Since he is only a human being and not human incarnation
Shankara told ‘Shivo'ham’ which means that He is Ishwara.
Ajay:
Like this, Swami preached Lakshman
And asked him whether he wants a vision.
Lakshman:
Oh! Datta! You have cleared all my doubts perfectly
I am memorizing Your gospel again and again
I am swimming in the infinite ocean of the bliss
I have no desire to have any vision
The divine knowledge itself is divine vision.
Swami:
I am pleased more for your thirst of knowledge
Knowledge is the true form of Brahman
Narayana means the abode of knowledge
He is ‘Ananta Padmanabha’, Ananta means infinite
The Veda says that the true infinite knowledge is Brahman.
Ajay:
Swami said like this and blessed Lakshman
With a wonderful vision of Ananta Padmanabha
Lying in a horizontal position as Brahman
Then, Swami stood vertically and appeared as
Ishwara called ‘Vishwarupa’ with huge personality.
Lakshman was immersed in the bliss
For several days he was remembering this
He was narrating about the vision several times
With pious tears and vibrating voice.
To be continued...
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