Mandukya Karika Lecture 096 on 29 March 2023

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

Om Jananem Sharadam Devim Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum Pahadapadmetayusritya Pranamami Mohor Moho Om Bhadram Kanne Vishnuyamadevaha Bhadram Pashyam Aakshabhirya Jatraaha Sthirai Rangai Stushtu Vagum Sastanu Bhi Yashemadevahitayadayo Swasthina Indru Vridhashravaha Swasthina Poosha Vishwavedaha Swasthina Starksho Arishtanemi Swasthino Brihaspatiridadhato Om Shanti Shanti Shanti Hare Om Om Oh Gods, may we always hear with our ears what is auspicious. Oh worshipful ones, may we with our eyes always see what is auspicious. May we live our allotted life, hail and hearty, offering our praises unto Thee. May Indra of ancient fame bestow auspiciousness on all of us. May the all-nourishing potion be propitious to all of us. May Garuda, the destroyer of all evil, be well-disposed towards all of us. May Brihaspati ensure all our welfare. Om Peace Peace Peace be unto all. So we are coming to the end of the Mandukya Karika, 2nd Chapter, Vaithathya Prakaranam. In our last class, we have explored especially two mantras which are very important for us. The 35th mantra, very important. वितरागः भयक्रोधैहि मुनिभिहि वेदपारगैहि निर्विकल्पोहि अयं दृष्टः प्रपंच उपशमो अद्वयः Actually, these karikas, as we understand, they are done. So these are done, the explanation of the 7th mantra which describes the state of the Atman, of the Mandukya Upanishad. 7th mantra which states that the Atman is not the waking, nor the dream, nor the deep sleep state. It is neither inside nor outside. It is none of these states. Therein occur two important words. When a person really understands this Atman and what happens, प्रपंच उपशमः, the whole bondage of the Samsara Chakra, what Shweta Shatra calls Brahma Chakra, simply that very Chakra takes us home and leaves us alone carrying other passengers. In fact, you know, every vehicle of transportation does exactly the same thing. What does a train do? Carries passengers from one place to another place. But it brings them back to their hometown and leaves them and new passengers will get in. So this is the process. Even the Brahma Chakra also does exactly that. Now how to realize our own true nature? What Swami Vivekananda had so crystal clearly put forward, each soul is potentially divine. This is called Tattvam, the truth. Then what is the goal? What is the ultimate Artha? And that is called Moksha. As an aid to that Moksha, Dharma, Artha, Kama are included. And that's why in philosophical language they are called instrumental values, not intrinsic value. Only Mukti, Moksha, that alone is the intrinsic value. Why? Because an instrumental value is just an instrument. It takes us to some distance and hands us over to another instrument, which takes us to some distance and hands us over to another instrument. Until finally, when we reach the destination, then we get down from there. And no more travel. No more going anywhere else. That is called Moksha. And that is why Moksha is called an intrinsic value, not an instrumental value. Parama Purushartha. All the other three are called merely Purusharthas. But without them, it is impossible to reach that goal. How to reach that goal? So, what is the truth? What is the goal of human life? Third sentence, attain this, manifest your potential divinity into actual divinity, either through Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, Jnana Yoga, by one, by more, by all of this together, and be free. And that is what actually, here also Gaudapada is telling us, certain qualities have to be developed. What do these qualities do? They have been acting so far to bind us. But do you know the secret? Those very instruments which bring our minds down are the very instruments through which we go up also. I have given umpteen number of times, a very sharp knife. A dull knife will not do. Very sharp knife, it can kill a person, but in the hands of a skillful surgeon. That very knife will bring back any number of lives. And both acts are going on simultaneously. And many of us will be astonished if I make a statement that even the evil acts, so called evil activities, are nothing but what people deserve according to Karma Siddhanta. That's why I said people do not understand, they think it is what is called other-worldliness of the Hindus. No, they are most practical people. Vedanta is very practical. So what are the important characteristics? Raga, Bhaya, and Krodha. These, until now, we are using to go down. But these very things can also take us up. I have mentioned many times and any number of times I will be mentioning also. For example, Ravanasura had a tremendous Raga and also Bhaya, also Krodha. Everything is there. But he was a very wise person. He directed all these things. You will be astonished to discover this meaning that he was enemy of God. He was not an enemy of God. He wants to be taken into the lap of his mother, the Divine Mother, very quickly. Why did he bring Mother Sita there? Not to do anything. But I have brought the Divine Mother. She will be pleased. She will call Bhagawan or Her grace will reveal to me. That is the Amtarartha, inner meaning. So, how did Kamsa attain to Krishna? Through Bhaya. Continuously his Bhaya made him think. And if we are also frightened, in fact we are not frightened, we have to become frightened of the day-to-day changes, of death, of disease, of old age, of unsavoury circumstances. If we develop that tremendous Bhaya, that Bhaya itself will take us to God. I will give a small example. Anybody says, I don't believe in God, let him go on an Amavasya night to a Smeshana and stay there. Let him see whether he will think of God or not. So, through Bhaya, provided the person directs that Bhaya and attaches it to God, and then thereby he will attain God very soon. What about Raga? Tremendous attachment. That is why what is called Paraprema, supreme devotion. You know what it is called? Ragaatmika Bhakti. That Ragaatmika Bhakti is the one which takes one to God. Simple Bhakti will take us to the main road, what is called Royal Road or Motorway, National Highway. But until we reach there, it is all called Gouni Bhakti. But once we reach there, it is a Motorway, Royal Way. Straight it takes us to the path. So, tremendous Raga. A devotee has tremendous attachment. And that attachment is in Sri Ramakrishna's words. When someone asked Sri Ramakrishna, how can one realize God? He says, combine the three attractions. The attraction of a chaste wife towards her husband. Attraction of a worldly man towards his possessions. A Lobhi, actually. And the attraction of a mother who has only one child. The mother's attraction towards the child. Combine all these three. That means, let not the mind be divided. Let it be one-pointed. And that is what takes us to God. And that is why even Rakshasas as well as Devatas, they have to be combined in order to churn the milk ocean. Bhagawan Vishnu, the superb psychologist, he knows what he is talking about. The mind should never be divided. This is full of what is called divine qualities. And this is full of demonic qualities. No, every quality must be combined. They must have one purpose. We must get Amrita. And that is the inner symbolism. Sri Ramakrishna gives a beautiful example. If even one thread is outside, it will not enter into the eye of the needle. So everything has to be completely twisted, pointed out, so that even one fiber will not be out. Otherwise, it is very difficult to thread the needle. This is what he is telling. Peetha means completely remove the prapanchika, the worldly attachment. Remove the fear that comes because of our attachment to the world. Let us remove all the anger that we already have developed, honed and developed to a finest degree. Now direct them all towards God. This is how we have to understand. But what is the first step? Withdrawal. What is the second step? Combination. What is the third step? Now direct them towards one goal. So there were people who did that and who succeeded in becoming one with God. And such people are called here beautifully Veda Paragaihi. Paragaihi means those who have reached the other shore. They have already crossed the stream of samsara. And they are called Veda Paragaihi because they alone have understood. There is a beautiful incident, Sri Ramakrishna quotes. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu went on a pilgrimage to South India. In one of the temples, a speech was going on by a pandit on Bhagavad Gita. So many people have gathered and were listening. And the person who was talking was quite a good pandit. In high terminology, he was talking. And there was literally what is called an illiterate looking person sitting in a corner, apparently listening and shedding tears. And Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's attention was directly attracted towards this person. He went and asked him, Why are you shedding tears? Because you understand what this man is speaking. That man folded and said, I do not hear even one word of what he is telling. Then why are you shedding tears? I see directly Bhagavan Krishna is teaching Arjuna. Indirectly Bhagavan Krishna is speaking to me. Whenever we are reading the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, what are we doing? We are directly listening. Maybe Sri Ramakrishna was speaking with M and other devotees. But when we are reading, studying rather, meditating rather, then He is addressing directly to us. This is how we have to read the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna if it is of some benefit to any one of us. So those who have withdrawn from Raga, that is intense attachment, Bhaya, intense fear, Krodha, intense anger, you can also say etc. Lobha, Moha, Mada, Matsarya. But withdrawal means what? Because if somebody does not have attachment, he is never going to make any progress, either in the world or much less to spiritual life. Once a disciple of Swami Brahmanandaji, he had asked, Swami, if you can remove my lust, then I can make progress in spiritual life. And Maharaj said, My child, I can do that. But then you will lose the very incentive to live. Because the person did not understand properly, lust is a lower expression of that desire. But if desire itself is removed, then the desire for God also will disappear. And that should never happen. There are deep words, whenever these people are speaking, we have to do Manana, and then only comes Nidhidhyasana. So, Vita, Raga, Bhaya, Krodha, Ihi, and they are called Munibhi. Who is a Muni? Mananaswaroopi is a Muni, a person who is deeply thinking all the time. How can I reach my goal? And these are the obstacles. How can I overcome? What does my Guru say? How to overcome? What does the scripture say, etc. And such people, whose thoughts are directed, and they are called Yogis, in Patanjali's terminology. Chittavrutti Nirodha doesn't mean, as many people misunderstand, suppressing or oppressing the thoughts. Means, direct all of the thoughts only towards God. Then, the very thoughts which used to bind us, will make us completely free. And these people, they will cross over the Samsara Chakra, and they are going to attain oneness with God. They are called Vedapargaihi. And then, what is their experience? By them, what is Drishtaha? What is experienced? What is realized? So, they see their own nature. I am Nirvikalpaha. I am free from all imaginations. What imaginations we are talking about? First of all, a waking state is an imagination. Dream is another imagination. And deep sleep is another imagination. Imagination means a thought in the mind. Then, we are also seeing, Nirvikalpaha means, he who is witnessing all these changes, that is what I am. Nirvikalpaha, I am Drishtaha. Then, what happens? This is the state of realization. I become Nirvikalpaha. I become Advaita. I become Advaya. But, what is the result? Immediately, two things will happen. Prapanchopashamaha. The entire bondage of the world falls away. It doesn't mean the world will fall away. We have to be very careful. If there is Jeevan Muktha, the world will still be there. It is experienced. But, just as we see a cinema, even though we see a cinema, we see both good things and evil things, but we enjoy both. Similarly, once we come to know that this is a rope. This is not a snake. After that, even... We have to exercise a bit of our imagination here. Even if that rope... Usually, the thought that comes is here is a rope. A rope is a rope. But, I add a little bit of spice there. Imagine that rope. It is a plastic rope and it looks exactly like a cobra and in color, in shape, with a hood. Maybe, it is even an electronic cobra and it will hiss also. It is programmed. Nowadays, AI is programmed. As soon as a man appears, immediately, it can hiss also. So, even after light is brought, oh, this is an electronic rope or looking like a snake. But then, there will be no fear. Similarly, the world is experienced. Experiencing of the world is not a problem, but its effect upon us, that is the problem. What happens for a Jeevan Mukta or for a worldly person, he is bound. For a realized soul, it is called Leela. It is the divine sport. Good thing, bad thing, everything adds to the enjoyment. This is called Prapancha Upashamaha. The binding part of the world is completely taken out like a cobra whose teeth have been taken out, but Advayaha. It is Brahman in the Nitya state. It is Brahman in the Leela state. What is the takeaway from this? That we have to progress step by step. That is called Sadhana. First of all, what is the Sadhana? Don't jump into the idea that I have to get rid of attachment, I have to get rid of fear, I have to get rid of anger. In fact, strengthen them. Increase them a million fold. Because if you don't have passion, you cannot have compassion. You can become passionless. It means what? Not like a very dead person is completely passionless. What it means is that you direct, you remove all the attachments to small, small things like to Shabda, Sparsha, Rupa, Rasagandha and direct them towards God. That is the meaning. So we have to develop these qualities. They have been more elaborately explained by Bhagawan Sri Krishna Himself in the 16th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita called Daivasra Sampad Vibhag Yoga. Proceeding to the 36th verse. Tasmadevam Viditvainam Advaite Yojayat Smritim Advaitam Samanuprapya Jadavat Lokam Acharet Therefore, knowing the Atman to be such, what such? Nirvikalpaha, Advaiyaha, Prapanchopashamaha Knowing it as such. Fix your attention on non-duality. Having realized non-duality, behave in the world like an insensible object. Again, which reminds us the Vivekachudamani and many other, what is called the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita towards the end, Sthita Pragna Lakshanas. We have to consciously develop those qualities which will bring our mind under control and direct all our emotions. They increase all our passions to the ninth degree. But in this case, they are all directed towards only the Atman or what we call God. Therefore, Evam Viditvainam That is, knowing the Atman. Enam means Atmanam. Viditva, how? Advaita. This is Advaiya, Nirvikalpa, Prapancha Upashama, Advaita Yojaya Smritim. Continuously dwell upon the thought of Advaiya. Now, these are terminology of the Advaita Vedanta. Devotees safely can substitute the word. So meditate on Narayana. Meditate on Shiva. Meditate on the Divine Mother. Meditate on your Krishnadevata, on Christ, on Buddha, on Allah, on any aspect of God. It doesn't matter. But what is the important thing? Yojaya Smritim. Continuous Smriti should be there. Remembrance should be there. Only then, even at the time of this prana departing from the body, that is at the time of what we call death, even then that Smriti will take us to God. Then what happens? He realizes. What does he realize? I am Advaita. I am progressing towards Advaita and slowly I approach Advaita and I become Advaita. That is called realization. Advaitam samanuprapya. Having reached Advaitam, jadavat lokam acharita. There afterwards, if by God's grace, still the body and mind remain, not because of karma phala or what they call prarabdha. No, there is no prarabdha because a realized soul doesn't say I am having a body, I am having a mind. No, it has nothing to do. Just as you are having a body, mosquito is having a body, this body is there. That is why Ramana Maharshi used to refer this. So, kara is not there. Only aham is there. Yojaya Smritim Advaitam samanuprapya. Such people are inevitably going to reach that state of realization that there is no Brahman, there is no Paramatma, there is no Jeevatma, there is only one Atma. Then what happens? Thereafter, if the life is still going on in that body, we see that that person is still alive. Jadavat lokam acharita. How does a realized soul really conduct his life? It is said he will be behaving like a child, he will be behaving like a jada, inert being. He will be behaving like a unmatta, as a completely mad cat, or pisacha, like a gowl, or he can be like a, what you call, chakravarti. Among the kings, he will be a chakravarti. Among the children, he will be a child. Among the pundits, he will be a great pundit. Among everybody, he will be the emperor of everybody. That is why Sri Ramakrishna used to say, Oh Mother, make me an emperor of devotees. And he had all those qualities. But then, what is the meaning? Jadavat lokam acharita. Actually, this word is a redundant word, useless word, because a person who is a realized God, he doesn't go on saying, what shall I do? How shall I live? What I am expected to do? Only a sadhaka is expected to emulate, to imitate such kind of characteristics, seeing how Guru is acting, how a maha purusha, a sadhu is acting. That is okay. But once ever having realized, there is no mind at all. If at all there is a mind, that is the mind of God, and God knows how to behave, we don't need to teach Him. But He may appear according to the God's will in any of these forms. So in the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, we have a beautiful explanation for this. Once Sri Ramakrishna asks M, Do you think I have egotism? And M immediately answers, No Sir. You do not have any egotism, but you kept a little bit to enjoy the presence of God, Divine Mother. Immediately the axe had fallen upon M's head. No, I have not kept. It is God who kept in me and everything depends. Once a drop of water falls into the ocean, only the ocean will be there. A drop doesn't have even any existence. You don't call it a drop. From now onwards we call it only an ocean. So it is God who has kept it. It is God who is enjoying. That is why, Deep meaning is there. So, there are a few things there. Balakavat, Jadavat, Vishachavat, Unmadavat, Chakravartivat, Mahapanditavat. He will be the greatest person that is who can surpass God. That is the idea. That is what we discussed. I wanted to remind because very important shlokas or karikas. We move on to the 37th. Then these are some of the characteristics of a Jeevan Mukta and which every sadhaka must emulate. That is why there is a beautiful book written, composed by a 12th century Christian monk. It is called The Imitation of Christ. Very beautiful book. That is to say, emulate the life of Christ, emulate the life of Buddha, emulate the life of Sri Ramakrishna and then only for women especially, emulate the life of Holy Mother. Then only there is a hope that we can progress in spiritual life. And if we do not emulate, however much japa dhyana we do, there is absolutely no way and this is the greatest mistake many devotees do. They increase their japa, meditation, so called religious activities but there is not much change in their behavior. It is the change in the behavior that is from tamas progress to rajas, from rajas progress to sattva that is most important thing. Here is some description is given. The man of self-realization or self-restraint, that means here it is a sadhaka, should be above all praise, above salutation and all rights prescribed by the smriti in connection with the departed ancestors. He should have this body and the atman as his support and depend upon chance and whatever chance brings, that means he should be satisfied with the things that come of themselves for fulfilling his physical needs and that whatever chance brings to him. This is very common thing in the life of great people. That is to say he doesn't wait. You are a great realized soul. You are a great man of renunciation. You are a great pandit. We never heard a person speak so beautifully, so eloquently and so much. Once somebody after hearing Swami Vivekananda's speech, they became so much carried away that they came and said, Swami, your intellect is stupendous. Do you know how Swami Vivekananda reacted? That's because, Madam, you are a fool just as I am a fool. That means to say Swami Vivekananda never had the idea I am the speaker, I know everything. I am HMV, his master's voice. That's all. So, Nisthuti. As I said, these become very normal, natural expressions of a Jeevan Mukta. And he doesn't care whether you are praising or not. Look at the life of Sri Ramakrishna or Swami Vivekananda. They don't care. For two reasons. One reason is who can really estimate a realized soul. Brahma eva bhavati. And Brahma is, in fact, what is called above the thinking, beyond speech, beyond thinking. eto vacho nivartanteya praapya manasasaha. So, who can praise him? Only if we know some people, then what their characteristic is. Very, very short-powered people, small-powered people, we can say something about it. But somebody who is so great, even it is said of Einstein that only seven or eight people understood his special theory of relativity. If that is the case with such a great man, if a beginner in a science class says, Oh, I know Einstein. He is such a great man. This is a completely useless type of talk because he doesn't know what is science, much less what is the greatness of Einstein or Beethoven or Shakespeare or Kalidasa or Bhavabhuti or Bana, etc., etc. There is a very interesting incident. Towards the end, one day, Swami Vivekananda was heard murmuring he had there been another Vivekananda, he would have understood what this Vivekananda had done. And who is there? Absolutely nobody is there. We don't know. We only have to believe he did something tremendous of which we have very little understanding even today. So nisthuti we should not expect. Why? Because if we are expecting sthuti and if somebody criticizes definitely we will go down. Nirmamaskaraha. Holy Mother is telling, one of the WhatsApp publications you will get that it is good not to have the ochre robe because the ahankara will come. This person had not bowed down to me. This person is sitting on another chair but at the same height like myself. This person has not bowed down. Worse, this person has bowed down to the other sanyasi who is younger than me and then when I give a speech this fellow will disappear. Inevitably he is found in the other junior swami's class and it is likely to arouse so much of jealousy and other things. Let us just enjoy these Divine Mother's leelas. Nirmamaskaraha. Don't expect any namaskara. And then nishvadhakaraye vacha. Swadha is a mantra. If we say when we are doing some yajna or yaga, when we say swaha, that is, this is the address. Indraya swaha means O Agni, this is the address of Indra. Somaya swaha this is the address of Soma. Urnaya swaha. Swaha means the mantra uttered this is meant for devatas but when we do the same offering to our pitru purushas the word used is swadha. That is why nishvadhakara means it indicates one must cross over all the Vedic karmakandas. That's all. Why? Because once viveka vairagya comes, the purpose of karmakanda is completely over. What is the purpose of karmakanda? To make a person adhikari. And who is an adhikari? He who has developed, as Shankara Bhagwatpada has mentioned so beautifully in his Udamani, viveka, vairagya, shamadhamadri shatka sampate and mumukshutham. If a person has developed intense yearning for God realization, Atman realization, Brahman realization that is the purpose of all Vedic karmakandas. Such a person doesn't want even Brahmaloka. Even if Brahmaloka is offered to him he will just spit it out and then he will not do he will not even give glance. Just like when a crow passes its tool upon anybody, will he think shall I keep it or shall I throw it out or shall I wash my cloth or not? Do you think the person will think twice? Instinctively he wants to get rid of all the smell, all the dirt, etc. Even Brahmaloka becomes in such a person's eye like the Kakapistha that is the word used in Yoga Vasistha to indicate the utmost vairagyam and then chala achala nike tascha that is sometimes his mind is moving in this world and sometimes it is moving in the world of God. Oh! So sometimes he is also thinking of the world. No! He is looking at Brahman in Nirvikalpa Samadhi. He is looking at the world as a manifestation of Brahman when he becomes conscious of this world. This is what Sri Ramakrishna says Nitya to Leela Leela to Nitya. Once a person realizes God, he will not think anything. But for a sadhaka, what does it mean? It means chala means that which is changing. In this changeable world, you keep your mind completely fixed on that which is unchanging and what is that that is unchanging? The subject. The pure consciousness which is witnessing everything I was in the waking, I was in the dream, I was in the deep sleep and I am witnessing everything. They are all changing and to, as I said there is a law that to know to the changes, there must be some subject which itself is completely, who himself is completely changeless. Then, how is he going to live? Naturally that comes if you don't praise somebody. If you don't do namaskaram to somebody, then how is your body, mind going on? Yatihi Adrachiko Bhave. Your eti. This is a beautiful word. That is, who is doing yathna is called a eti. Who is doing a sadhana is called a sadhaka. So, continuously striving to move forward such a person adrachika, that means whatever chance brings. What do you mean by chance? There is nothing called chance in this world. If one cannot take care of oneself, totally depends upon the mother. The mother herself provides. Sri Ramakrishna gives the example of the young one of a cat. Does it know where to be and what to do? All that it knows is meow. And the mother comes wherever it is. Sometimes the mother puts the kitten on the bed of a master. Sometimes on a heap of rubbish, wherever it puts, the young one only knows. This is the Sharanagati Bhava and Sri Ramakrishna followed Ramanujacharya Shank, what is called Sharanagati Bhava, said, My children, take refuge in the Divine Mother. There is no other way. That is what is meant here. The man of self-restraint should be above all praise. Praise means above all criticism. Let people do what they talk. I am Brahman. Nothing happens to me. And this person has not saluted me. That person is saluting. What a nice person he is. Not only salutation. There are very funny things, you know. I have very bad eyes. Some people come, hundred salutations they do, they bring nothing. And there are other people who do not do proper salutation, but they bring plenty of things. Whom do you think I am going to prefer? Really speaking, you should have some intelligence to understand what I am meaning. So, we should be above all this. Whatever comes is Mother Annapurna's prasada. Whatever it comes. This is called Madhukari. Everything is Madhukari. Even if somebody is giving me a great what we call feast, that is also nothing but Madhukari. And this person had crossed, transcended the need for all Karmakanda. His mind had attained to that one-pointedness and it wants only, became an Adhikari. He developed proper discrimination and proper renunciation and then he has control over his body, mind. Completely endowed with tremendous Shraddha and he wants only one thing and only one thing and that is called Moksha. That is what called, that is in Bhagavad Gita terminology this is called only Samadrishti. Koushalam means I will do many things, many activities but I want only one result. I want God and nothing else. So, such a person have this body and the Atman as his support. Body is a support because he has to do sadhana. Atman as the supporter, as the ultimate protector and caretaker because we came from the Atman and we go back to Atman and depend totally upon whatever comes. As I said this word chance is a very unfortunate word. There is nothing called chance. Everything is determined by our karma phala and that is why Shri Ramakrishna used to say, the Divine Mother has provided me with five suppliers and one after the other and one supplier has disappeared for some reason. He had done his job and then whatever happens, the next person will come, immediately steps in. Similarly, those who took care of him, first Hriday, then a little bit of Ramlal, then Baburao Maharaj etc. etc. It is the Divine Mother who will do all those things. I am a child, I eat, I drink, I just play and my mother will look after me. That is the idea. This is how we have to develop. Then we move on to the last karika. Tattvam adhyatmikam drishtva Tattvam drishtva tu bhasyataha Tattvibhutas tadaramaha Tattva aprajyuto bhavet That is Tattvam adhyatmikam drishtva Bhasyatau tu tattvam drishtva Tattvibhutaha Tadaramaha Tattva aprajyuta bhavet Again this word bhavet means one should be like that. But for a sadhaka, we don't need to describe a realized soul because a realized soul automatically, he will behave. There is no need to put forth any effort for a realized soul. But for every sadhaka should emulate, imitate. What is he telling? Having known the truth. What is the truth? That everything is Atman, Vishnu, Vishwamitam, Vishnumayam, Jagat regarding what exists internally. That is to say, the mind, the intellect, the chitta, the ahankara as well as the truth regarding what exists externally. That is to say, the whole world is made up of pancha bhutas. Pancha bhutas have come from Atman. Atmana akasha sambhutaha Akasha dvayoh vayoh agnih agneh rapaha adhyah prithivi pradivyam oshadayaha oshadi bhyo annam annat rasam eha purushaha So, this sadhaka, if he practices this, ultimately he becomes one with reality, derives his pleasure from it and never deviates from the reality. For a realized soul, you don't need to say he should never deviate from the real. It is impossible because there is no unreal. This is the greatest teaching for a realized soul. There is nothing unreal. What about this so-called mithya prapancha? It is not a mithya prapancha at all. It is nothing but pure brahman pitnamarupa outside brahman pitnamarupa inside brahman without namarupa. This is without namarupa it is called mithya with namarupa it is called leela. There is nothing else. Tattvam adhyatmikam drishtva Having realized that tattvam, the truth, highest truth what is it? It is nothing but I am the atman aham brahmasmi. And then when this person sadhaka closes his eyes, he enters and he says only one vritti will be there and then nirvikalpa samadhi aham brahmasmi experience. As I said, even this saying aham brahmasmi is nothing but from our viewpoint a person sitting there in nirvikalpa samadhi doesn't go on saying aham brahmasmi aham brahmasmi aham brahmasmi There is no need to say because there is nobody else. You have to say I am so and so only when there is somebody else. But when this person's mind is functioning, body is functioning, because without body, mind cannot function. That means he is beholding this world. What does he say? Only brahman. vidyavane sampanne brahmane gavi hasti nishnu jai vatshvapake panditah samadarshanaham tatvam drishtatu drishtvatu bahyatah tatvibhutah He became brahman. And he doesn't say it. It is for our sake. tadah aramaha He became paramananda swaroopa Arama means actually peaceful state but here peaceful means I am sat, I am chit, I am ananda swaroopaha tatvat aprachyato bhavet and he will never be deviating from this tatva. That is, this is the highest goal. And this is how this chapter comes to an end. Gaudapada's karika, vaitadhyam. We have to understand now what is called vaitadhyam. Vaitadhyam means to know what I am witnessing and thinking it is the unreal, that is nothing but pure reality. Pure brahman. Brahman with name and form is what is called vaitadhyam. Before realization we have to keep everything is changing but as Ramakrishna says only when a person reaches the roof and then understands the whole house is nothing but made up of the same material so sarvam khalvidam brahma first aham brahmasmi then sarvam khalvidam brahma. With this we have come to the end of the tathya prakaranam. And now I will give you very briefly a summary of it. So the seventh mantra of the Mandukya Upanishad gives the definition of the real nature of Atman, the turiyam, and in that important definition of Atma, two words are very important. One is prapancha upashamam and prapancha mithyatvam and another is advaitam. This advaitam is a special topic which is elaborated in the third chapter of this mandukya karikas called advaita prakaranam. We are going to enter soon after this. So, Udapadacharya dedicates 38 karikas to show the mithyatvam of this world. And in the third chapter he will be dedicating almost 48 karikas that in fact what I just now said, everything that is mithyatvam is nothing but seen properly through realization, through the eyes of a realized soul. There cannot exist anything second. That is why it is called advaitam. So, there is brahman, there is mithyatvam. No, there is only brahman. So long as we do not know brahman, everything appears to be only mithya. What is mithya? This is not the master. This is not the master. Like a servant searching for the master in a dark room. And that will be again explained. Once we understand this idea, it will be very easy. Further, Udapada, what does he do? First of all, he says, how do we know? We all have that experience. Waking state is real, but dream is a mithya. So, he takes up what are the characteristics of the dream state. What is the important thing? When we are in dream state, even if Gaudapada comes and tells us that this is mithya, we are not going to accept it. But when we wake up, no acharya needs to come. Oh, I myself have created the entire dream world. That knowing you experience something and think it is real, but when the magic or the spell breaks, we understand it is nothing but my imagination, that is called mithyatma. Changefulness, experienceability, concreteness, birth and death, that is called jada, that is called mithyatma. But for that we have to wake up. We have the impression that the waking state is the only reality, but we don't understand. Pratikshana, every minute all of us are changing. And Gaudapadas as well as Shankaracharyas, they explain this one through two important ideas. Whatever is experienced is unreal, is Shankaracharya. Whatever is changing is unreal, is Gaudapada. There is not much difference between these two views and that is expounded so beautifully and then Gaudapada takes that there are different views about Atman. Some think of it as prana, some think of it as kala, some think of it as something else. 35 views. As I mentioned, not 35, it can be any number of views and all of them are thought as Atman. Atman means reality. For example, somebody thinks that this waking world is real, his behavior will be following his conviction that this world is real. But, just like a person who wakes up from a dream and he dreamt that he had won a lottery ticket, immediately after getting up, he would not check his bank balance, whether so much of lottery money has been deposited in his account or not. So, this idea that who is real, I alone am real, whatever experience is not real, that is the essence of 4th to 18th, 18th to 28th, 35 different views. And thereafter, he says that really speaking, from the paramarthika view, that there is no world, there is no sadhaka, there is no sadhana, there is no one who is bound, there is no one who did sadhana, there is no one who is freed, ityesha paramarthita. This is beautifully expounded, very often quoted in the 32nd verse of this Vaitatya Prakarana. Thereafter, how to attain? The goal is to know I am Atman. That is what the 2nd mantra of the Mandukya Upanishad says, I am Atman. This Atman is none other than Brahma. This is called one of the Mahavakyas. And how to attain to that? Some sadhanas are given. What sadhanas? We have seen, there should be attachment, there should be fear, and there should be tremendous amount of anger. And we already have got. We have to hone it to the 9th degree. But then, withdraw it from the world and direct it towards God because the more attachment we have to the world and the more we will be attached to God. If an electric bulb is giving 5 watt light, whether you take it to the toilet or you take it to the shrine room, just because you take it to the shrine room, it will not give you 500 watt light. That is, if my mind has only so much of love, so much of attachment, so much of eagerness, so much of energy, that much alone will be available for God realization for spiritual practice. Therefore, this teaching may come a little bit surprising to you. Develop your attachment tremendously and then there is a chance that you will realize God very soon. Provided that soon, this is the law, whenever attachment, whenever anger, whenever fear reaches the ninth degree, there is only one object which can be targeted by this three and the name of that is Atman or God. Then always continuously think of God and once when a person reaches, he will realize by the grace of God all the sadhanas are meant only to take us to the state of Sharanagati and once we reach that state of Sharanagati, God himself will pull us like a huge magnet pulling iron filings and then we realize. This is what the summary of Bhagavan Krishna Sarva Dharmaan Parityajya Mamey Kam Sharanam Vraja Aham Tvaa Sarva Paapai Bhiyo Mokshay Shyami Maasu Jaha Thereafter, Gaudapada summarizes how a Jivanmukta is living. Every sadhaka should emulate Jivanmukta's characteristics, that is do not care for Sita and Vushna, Lava and Alava, praise and insult and then live completely indifferent to all of them. Whatever God ordains, let it be accepted as Mahaprasada and definitely we are going to reach the goal. With this, the second chapter is over. Now I will stop here. From next class onwards, we will be starting the third chapter which is called Advaita Prakaranam and describing what is the goal etc. in 48 Karikas. And so, it is God's grace we could complete. I hope I am able to convey my ideas clearly. I don't care what language I use or anybody uses. You should be able to understand them properly. So, today's class I will stop here. If there are any questions, definitely we will be discussing about them after the class is over. But be very brief, pointed, because even to be able to ask the question requires tremendous amount of intelligence instead of going round and round and round beating the bush. So, hone your intellect how to ask the question, what is it I want to know and is it going to help me in my sadhana. Om Jananim Sharadam Devim Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum Adah Padme Thayo Sritva Pranamami Moho Moho May Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti. Ramakrishna.