30 Jul 2022
[Ms. Thrylokya asked (on phone): Shankara says that God is soul. Ramanuja says that soul is a part of God. Madhva says that soul is different from God except one similarity, which is that both are awareness. Datta Swami says that soul is totally different from God without any similarity. What is the truth?]
Swami replied (on phone): All are correct as per the background of the receivers of knowledge. All were atheists with highest ego at the time of Shankara and Shankara had to tell like that. Later on, the ego of the receivers of knowledge came down and hence, Ramanuja told like that. Later on, the ego of the receivers of knowledge came down very much and Madhva told like that. When Datta Swami came, the receivers of knowledge had well-developed IQ with sharp scientific analysis and were capable in absorbing the ultimate truth and hence, Datta Swami told like this. If Datta Swami existed in earlier times, He would have told the same as told by the earlier preachers. In fact, all the three divine preachers and Datta Swami are the incarnations of the same one God Datta. Knowledge should be preached as per the level of absorption of the receivers of knowledge. Hence, Datta Swami told the ultimate truth, which is very harsh but true.
Datta Swami called God as unimaginable awareness and called the soul as imaginable awareness. The word ‘awareness’ is used in two stages:-
i) Awareness as the power receiving the knowledge, which is the subject (Knower)
ii) Awareness as the process of knowing, which is a verb (Knowledge)
In the case of the soul, awareness is energy acting as knower (brain energy) as well as the process of knowing or knowledge (Electric Pulses running through nerves called as neurons carrying the information of an object from external senses). In the case of God, awareness cannot be considered as knowledge or knower. In the case of the soul, the knower is a form of energy generated from inert energy functioning in a active materialized nervous system (especially in the brain). This knower himself is the individual soul or approximately can be called as soul (Actually, soul is the inert energy that is converted into awareness.). In the case of God, God is unimaginable and the word ‘awareness’ in the case of God can neither mean the knower (brain energy) nor knowledge nor the process of knowing (neurons in the nerves). God is also a knower in the sense that He also gets the knowledge of the object like the soul. In the case of the soul, we can say that the soul is a form of known inert energy. In the case of God, we cannot say that God is a knower like the soul due to the absence of brain in God. Also, God does not have nervous system and neurons so that the process of knowing or knowledge is not like the case of the soul and the process of knowing is unimaginable. Therefore, the commonality between God and soul is only knowledge of the object. The object is finally known to God (without the help of the known concepts, in our view, of knower and the process of knowing) due to His omnipotence. The final object is known to the soul with the help of the known concepts of knower and the process of knowing. In the case of the soul, the knower is completely known to us as a form of energy. The process of knowing is also a form of energy. In case of God, there is no energy and no materialized nervous system or matter. Hence, in the case of God, we can neither say that the knower is a form of energy nor can we say that the process of knowing is a work form of energy. In the case of God, both knower and knowledge are unimaginable. The common point is only that both God and soul know the object. Therefore, except for the fruit of knowledge (Knowledge of the object), both the knower and the knowledge are unimaginable in the case of God. The only common point is that the soul as well as God know that there is for example, a pot in the room. Except for this final one point, everything is different in the case of God and the soul. Hence, the soul is imaginable and God is unimaginable in the entire concept. Mere knowledge of the object can’t bring any similarity between the two cases.
When both knowers are different and when both processes of knowing of the object are also different, it clearly means that both the subjects (God and soul) are totally different. At least if there is commonality between the processes of knowing, we can try to bring some similarity because process of knowing is related to the subject. Even that possibility is ruled out. Therefore, the two subjects (God and soul) are totally different items because one is unimaginable and the other is fully imaginable. The knowledge of the object (fruit of process of knowing) is outside the subject and cannot bring any commonality between the two subjects (God and soul).
Even the knowledge of the object (final fruit) is different in the case of God and soul. God is omniscient and knows everything in the creation (Sarvajna). The soul is having very little knowledge only (Alpajna) and hence there is a lot of difference in this final fruit also. Merely knowing about a pot in a room is only a part of the total knowledge and there is vast difference in the total knowledge. By this, it is proved that God and soul are totally different in any concept. Even if you confine God and soul to only the case of looking at a pot, there also, a lot of difference exists. If God wishes, He can see the background of the pot, which is the structure of mud consisting of atoms and sub-atomic particles. A soul can’t see this background with only the help of its naked eyes.
If you take mediated God in the place of unimaginable God, there is similarity in the external media. As far as the internal core of the mediated God (incarnation) is concerned, the unimaginable God is the core of the mediated God whereas the soulis only a part of the medium (because awareness is a work form of inert energy). The mediated God is like a diamond wrapped by a covering cloth. The mediated soul is like a piece of cloth covered by its own cloth. If you neglect the medium, the mediated God is the unimaginable God whereas the human being (the medium is matter and energy) and energetic being (the medium is energy) are just the medium only in and out because the soul or an individual soul is also a work form of energy only. The soul or individual soul is just a part of the medium or creation as said in the Gita that the soul or individual soul is paraprakruti or a part of prakruti or creation.
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