08 Nov 2024

What is the thumb-sized purusha described by the Veda?

[Dr. Nikhil asked: Padanamaskarams Swamiji, I seek your kind explanation regarding the thumb-sized Puruṣa described in the Veda. Please refer to this file: Thumb-Sized Purusha.docx. Your servant, Nikhil

Questions about the Thumb-Sized Puruṣa: What is the thumb-sized puruṣa described by the Veda?

This topic was discussed in a spiritual debate at Sringeri, a few years ago. (Video link: Vedanta Vakyartha in the Sri Mahaganapati Vakyartha Vidwat Sabha).(Click here to read full question)

The following two Vedic statements from the Kaṭha Upaniṣad are relevant here:

aṅguṣṭhamātraḥ puruṣo madhya ātmani tiṣṭhati. īśānaṃ bhūtabhavyasya na tato vijugupsate. etadvai tat—Veda, Kaṭha Up. 2.1.12.

The Puruṣa, of the size of a thumb, dwells in the ātman. He is the Lord of the past and the future. After knowing Him, one does not hate anyone. This, verily, is That.

aṅguṣṭhamātraḥ puruṣo’ntarātmā. sadā janānāṃ hṛdaye saṃniviṣṭaḥ. taṃ svāccharīrāt pravṛhen-muñjādiveṣīkāṃ dhairyeṇa. taṃ vidyācchukram amṛtaṃ taṃ vidyācchukram amṛtamiti—Veda, Kaṭha Up. 2.3.17.

The Puruṣa, not larger than a thumb, the inner self, always dwells in the hearts of men. Let a man separate Him from his body with steadiness, as one separates the tender stalk from a blade of grass. Let him know that Self as the Bright, as the Immortal; as the Bright, as the Immortal.

With reference to the following two quotations from the Kaṭha Upaniṣad, is the thumb-sized Puruṣa which is present in ātman, (1) the unmediated Parabrahman, (2) the mediated God (Īśvara), or (3) the individual soul (jīva)? Corresponding to each of the three options, are these statements describing the case of (1) the Energetic Incarnation (God Datta, Nārāyaṇa), (2) the Human Incarnation or (3) the ordinary human being? Depending on which of the three options is correct, what is the ātman, mentioned in the quoted Vedic statements?

Why is the puruṣa said to be of the size of the thumb?

Does it not contradict the total pervasion of God in the medium, stated elsewhere in the Veda (Antarbahiśca tat sarvaṃ vyāpya Nārāyaṇaḥ sthitaḥ—Veda, Nārāyaṇa Sūktam)? If Parabrahman or an Energetic Incarnation (God Datta) remains only in the human medium as a tiny form in the heart, there cannot be total monism between God and the medium in the Incarnation. Even if puruṣa means the individual soul (individual awareness), we know that it pervades the entire body. At least, awareness pervades the entire brain, which is much larger than the size of a thumb. In that case, these Vedic references of a thumb-sized puruṣa contradict with logic and experience.

However, there are several Vedic statements describing the smallness of this Puruṣa. These statements consistently describe the location of this Puruṣa as the heart and not the brain or any other part of the body. For instance, the Nārāyaṇa Sūktam describes a brilliant fire in the region of the heart. It also describes a thin steady upright flame, in whose tip Paramātmā is seated (tasya madhye vahniśikhā aṇīyordhvā vyavasthitāḥ…nīvāra śūkavat tanvī pītā bhāsvatyaṇūpamā. tasyāḥ śikhāyā madhye paramātmā vyavasthitaḥ—Veda, Nārāyaṇa Sūktam). The Dahara Vidyā also describes the Entity present in the heart to be tiny (Veda, Chāndogya Up. 8.1). The Śāṇḍilya Vidya describes it to be tinier than a mustard seed as well as greater than all worlds (Eṣa ma ātmā antar-hrdaye aṇīyān vriher vā, yavād-vā, sarṣapād-va…jyāyānebhyo lokebhyo—Veda, Chāndogya Up. 3.14.3).]

Swami replied:- All these are imaginary representative models of God with which devotees assume that the unimaginable God or God Datta merged homogeneously. The adjectives used in the description of such representative models clearly indicate that they are the imaginary models for God and the worship of such models will increase the theoretical devotion to a great extent. All these are poetical imaginations. All these models are only imaginary media. People, who want to escape practical devotion spend a lot of time in debates about such models. The thumb is the main force of the hand. Hence, Drona asked for the thumb of Ekalavya to make him weak in the art of fighting. Similarly, God is the main force of this creation. In Cin Mudra, the pointing finger representing the individual soul joins the thumb, which represents God. The pointing finger naturally joins with the other three fingers, which represent the three qualities (Sattvam, Rajas and Tamas). This means that the individual soul is naturally associated with the three qualities. All these are belonging to the imaginable domain and cannot be the actual unimaginable God or even God Datta.

They can only represent the concepts, which are already known to us. It is a method of preaching the spiritual knowledge with the help of tools. Those, who fail in the fundamentals of practical devotion become wonderful scholars in such endless theoretical gossips. You are a scientist and you very well know that representative models are good for learning the theoretical concepts and also good for meditation to develop theoretical concentration or devotion. We must take the good concepts represented by them and leave the models after their purpose is served. The sages debated on such models like Dahara Vidyaa, Madhu Vidyaa etc., for millions of births! But, when the same sages were born as Gopikas, they complained to Mother Yashoda that God Krishna stole their butter preserved for their children!! Theory must generate practice and mere theory is useless for self-upliftment. At the best, the theory may be useful for preaching the spiritual knowledge. A professional course expects the candidate to do something practically to help the economy of the nation. But some masters in professional education become teachers in technical institutions. Government also supports such teachers economically since they are also needed in the service of technical education. Similarly, God also supports such teachers, who are needed in the propagation of spiritual knowledge.

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