Aitareya Upanishad Lecture 08 on 27 August 2023

Detailed Summary

Introductory Remarks

- Swami Dayatmanandaji summarizes the first section - Atman created the worlds, then created protectors and governors for them. He divided himself into enjoyers, objects of enjoyment, and presiding deities that sustain both.

- Atman created hunger and thirst (ashana/peepasa) to drive the desire for experience. The jivas fell into samsara, afflicted by endless cravings. The cosmic powers pleaded for bodies to fulfill desires.

- Atman granted animal bodies but the powers found them inadequate. Animals lack discrimination between transient and eternal. Atman leads jivas through evolution to human birth when consciousness fully manifests.

Verse 1: Granting the Human Body (500 words)

- Hearing the powers' prayer, Atman granted the human body - the supreme instrument for life's journey. The powers rejoiced and recognized it as Atman's greatest creation.

- Atman invited them to enter the designated houses - sense organs and body parts meant for each cosmic power. Powers rushed to animate the wondrous human body.

- Agni became speech and entered the mouth, Vayu became breath and entered nostrils, Surya became sight and entered eyes, Disha became hearing and entered ears.

- Plants represent sustenance hence became body hair supporting skin as organ of touch. Moon presides over mind so became mind in the heart. Mrityu removes bodily wastes so became excretion.

- Waters sustain creation so became semen, entering reproductive organs. Each body part was matched with its cosmic power animator.

Verse 2: The Plight of Hunger and Thirst

- After powers entered the human body, hunger and thirst had no homes. They pleaded to Atman for dwelling places to activate the senses.

- Atman assured them homes in each sense organ. Hunger for sights dwells in eyes, for sounds in ears, etc. Desire drives the senses' functioning.

- Hunger and thirst become one with the sense's presiding deity. By enabling indulgence, they partake of the sense experience as food.

- The triad of sense capacity, presiding power, and hunger for stimuli makes experience possible. Atman designed humans for such divine play.

Verse 3: Glory and Tragedy of Samsara

- Shankaracharya extols samsara poetically. It is endless and support-less like an ocean. Ignorance, desire and action form the perilous waters.

- Diseases, decay and death are terrible alligators. Worldly joys provide occasional rafts of respite that further fuel desire.

- Mind, senses and objects whip up waves of intense craving. Anger, greed, delusion and envy churn the mind unceasingly, causing suffering.

- The ocean relentlessly roars with agony. Hells await those overcome by vice. But knowledge offers liberation's boat to reach the shore.

- The boat is built of truthfulness, honesty, charity, compassion, non-violence, self-restraint, dispassion, and holy company. One gains freedom.

- Samsara's sorrows spur the pursuit of truth. Human birth is precious for this quest. But even samsara is transformed by the vision of its divinity.

Conclusion

- Atman manifests the entire creation by dividing itself into diverse cosmic powers, sense capacities and realms. Human body represents the peak.

- Sense hunger and presiding powers animate the body so the embodied consciousness can experience reality and ultimately realize its divine nature.

- Aitareya Upanishad reveals the unity of creator and creation. Meditating on this mystic vision, overcoming indulgence and cultivating virtue paves the way for self-knowledge.

- Shankaracharya shows that sorrow spurs this journey to truth. Human birth allows fulfillment of life's purpose. Viewing the world as divine action facilitates liberation.

In summary, the lecture provides a poetic vision of our divine essence diversifying into the cosmos and evolving through successive forms to manifest fully in the human body, where we can attain enlightenment by overcoming indulgence and awakening to our eternal nature.

Full Transcript(Corrected)

We have been studying the Aitareya Upanishad. We have completed the first section of the first chapter. Aitareya has three chapters. Let us remember: so far, what did we cover? That before creation, only Atman was there, and nothing else existed. And then, Atman thought, 'Let me create the world.' In other words, 'Let me become many. Me, the one, let me become the many.' That is called Vishwa.

Then, what did he do? He first created a Prajapati or, in Puranic language, Brahma. And what did Brahma do? He took all the Panchabhutas, which were manufactured or manifested out of an infinitesimal part of himself. He visualized that Panchabhutas like both the living and non-living beings. Non-living beings and living beings were again divided into two categories: the enjoyer and the enjoyed. It is not an absolute division; the enjoyer becomes the enjoyed, and the enjoyed also becomes the enjoyer.

I give an illustration. When I am eating a sweet, the sweet becomes the enjoyed, an object that is called Adhibhuta. And I become the enjoyer. But when a mosquito sees me and starts to suck my blood, I become the enjoyed, an object, and it becomes the enjoyer. When I am looking at you, I am the enjoyer, and you are the enjoyed. When you are looking at me, you are the enjoyer, and I am the enjoyed. There is no such division; this is only the enjoyer, and this is the enjoyed. But both of these must be regulated.

So Bhagawan, He created Adhidaivitas. What is the Adhidaivata? That element of the five bhutas which will become an object to be enjoyed and also becomes the subject which is the enjoyer. But what is the specialty of the Adhidaiva? The Adhidaiva is a universal concept. All the enjoyers, all the enjoyed together are called Adhidaiva.

So Adhyatma is the enjoyer, Adhibhutika is the enjoyed, and Adhidaivika which supports both the enjoyer and the enjoyed. This is the concept we have seen. So for the sake of that, the Aitreya Upanishad gives a particular formula: Atman thought, 'Let me create the world.' So he created the worlds. For example, 14 lokas. And then, what is the point of having 14 houses if there is nobody who stays there and then enjoys taking recourse to that house? So he thought, 'Let me fill it.' So what did he do? He created beings, and that is what we saw. He took the pancha bhutas, and he divided them into the living and non-living.

How do we know? Because it is not specifically mentioned. He created the non-living, but specifically mentioned he became the living. He made a sharira. Sharira means body, and the body consists of a number of indriyas. To house the indriyas, he created the physical body and also a subtle body. He housed what he described as the mind. Hridaya, the physical counterpart, is the house. Earlier, I told you another word, golaka, window. Today I am using the word house, which I think is better than saying a window. So the housing is there, and the indriyas also were created: Niravidyata, eyes, ears, mouth, skin, nabi, etc., etc.

We are going to see a little bit, and then they have to be sustained. The one who sustains both the enjoyer and the enjoyed, Adi Bhautika and Adi Adhyatmika, is called Adi Daivika. The only thing is, instead of saying one Virat Purusha, our bodies and minds have been divided into separate parts, and each part has a specific function, which I am going to mention very soon. Each function, as well as the indriya (senses), and the house are the manifestation of Adi Daivata, the presiding deity.

For example, we have seen he first visualized a mouth. That is a house. What should it house? Speech. And who is going to use that speech? In what form? Speech must manifest. So, for that to manifest, there must be a power behind it. That power is called Agnihi. Another example, he made another house. It is called the Nostril. There must be somebody. What is it? Prana. Prana means the capacity to breathe in, to breathe out. We know it. Without that, it is impossible even to live. But who is manifesting as both the prana and the house? Vayu Daivata.

Similarly, the eye is the house that makes Chakshu. Chakshu means the power to experience colours, shapes, and sizes. That is called Chakshu. But for the eye to be able to experience this, it must be powered. Like electricity must power a bulb, a fan, a heater, a fridge, etc. Otherwise, they won't work. So, what is the movement of the fan? Electricity is one function. What is heat? Electricity is another function. And what is the refrigerator? Electricity is another function. Or it could be solar power also. It doesn't matter. Power should be there. So, like that, the divine power should be there.

The only thing is, all the powers of every individual, all these and then also the Indriyas. The Indriyas belong to the subtle body. So, all the subtle bodies together, all the powers behind every organ of the subtle body as well as the physical body, that is called Adhishtatru Daivata, presiding deities. Then who am I? Who are you? Who is anybody? This tree, this river, this mountain is nothing but Adhishtatru Daivata. And all Adhishtatru Daivata are the presiding deity, Brahma, dividing himself or manifesting himself into Panchabhutas. Panchabhutas are the presiding deities of every part of the physical as well as subtle body.

Yesterday, we have given—I just wanted to give you—there are certain books. Especially, there are three books. One book is called Vedanta Sara, another is called Tattva Bodha, and another is called Vedanta Paribhasa. Paribhasa means technical jargon, Vedantic terminology where Vedanta, especially Advaita Vedanta, uses certain words with a particular meaning. If we do not know the meaning of the jargon, just as a student who wants to learn maths, if he doesn't understand what is plus, what is minus, what is division, what is multiplication, he will never be able to progress a millimetre. Similarly, these books help us. Not only do they summarize in the most straightforward language the entire concept of Advaita Vedanta, but also the particular meanings of specific words.

So, Tattva Bodha is the easiest for elementary school students, Vedanta Sara is for college students, and Vedanta Paribhasa is for PhD students. Extremely subtle, extremely deep, and mind-boggling. That is so marvellous. Anyway, out of curiosity, I wanted to give you two examples.

Supposing there is a tree, and I want to see the tree. What do I need? First of all, I need my eyes. Do the eyes really perceive? No. It is the mind which goes out like a person leaving the house. It goes out, envelops the tree. That is called Vriksha Vritti. Tree is called Vriksha. Vritti means a thought process. Now, as Vedanta Paribhasa says, there are two, and there is a beautiful book in Hindi that is also very tough. It is called Vicharasagaram by one Nischaladasa. Swami Vivekananda admired it. It is only academic information. You don't need to worry if you don't remember also. So there are two terms there: Vritti Vyapti and Phala Vyapti.

I am giving an example of how deep our people have gone. So what every Vritti, every thought contains two elements: the reflection of consciousness plus the form, the knowledge of the object perceived. The knowledge of the object is called Vritti, and the reflection of consciousness is called Chidabasa. And both must come together; otherwise, there is no experience at all. So what does the mind do? It goes out, makes a mould, itself a mould, envelops the tree, comes back. This is called Vritti Vyapti - perversion of the thought around the object. But the mind doesn't know what it is. So what is to be done? Another word is there: Phala Vyapti. Phala means the end result, right knowledge. So the Vritti's function is to bring inside, present it to Chidabasa, and Chidabasa, the light, the consciousness, awareness, illuminates that object Vritti and tells the mind, 'This is called a tree.' Then the mind knows, 'Oh, this is called a tree.'

So, two functions, two actions, separate actions, like a servant, an unintelligent servant brings an object and innocently asks the master, 'What is this?' And the master has to tell, 'This is what we call a tree, a mat, a mango, etc.' So there are two types of objects: objects which cannot illuminate, they are not swayam prakashakaha, and objects which are swayam prakashakaha, self-illuminating, illuminating others. For example, sunlight. For example, electric light. Electric light is there, and then the mind goes there and envelops the electric light, comes inside. Now, in this case of the electric light, the electric light itself is self-illuminating. It doesn't require, only Vritti Vyapti is sufficient. But if it is, for example, a mat, the mat is not self-illuminating, nor does it illuminate anything else. In the case of the mat, we require Vritti Vyapti, Phala Vyapti. In the case of an illuminating object, a lamp, a light, we require only one. All that the mind needs to do is to go there and then it envelops because as soon as it envelops, the light itself is, as if telling, 'I am the light.'

So this kind of going too deep, and then it is highly illuminating to the intellect. The intellect becomes very deep by thinking about these things. Of course, it may put us to sleep or it may even confuse us too much. That's why Sri Ramakrishna said, 'You only need mango juice; you don't need any knowledge of mango.' That is what Sri Ramakrishna has said.

Anyway, coming back to our subject, God created the houses. For example, what we call the eye, the ear, the nostril, the mouth, the skin – they are called houses. The legs, hands, and the organs of generation, evacuation, etc. – these are called Karmendriyas. They are also houses. And the houses must have dwellers in the houses, which are called Indriyas. Remember, every Indriya belongs to the subtle body.

So we can't see the Chakshu. We can see the eye, but we can't see the Chakshu. We can't see the Vaak; we can only see the mouth. But when the Vaak comes out and then when we hear, then we get the knowledge. So we have to say, and this one – so beautifully from the Tattva Bodha. So these are the triad, three. The house, which belongs to the gross body, the Indriya which belongs to the subtle body, and the presiding deity which sustains, illumines both of them, makes them function. So Mukham, Vaak, Agnihi. This is the triad, three, three, three.

So the mouth, the speech, and fire. Nasika, Prana, Vayu. The nostril, the breathing, and the Vayu Devata. And what we call the house, the eye, and then Chakshu, the power or ability to see. And Sun, the ear, and the ability to hear, Shrotram. And Disha, space, Tvak – that is the skin, Sparshendriya. And Raumani, Raumani means hairs. And who is the Devata? Oshade Vanaspathaya.

I will come, because this looks a little bit peculiar. Let me come back. Hridayam, the physical heart, Manaha, the mind. Our physical heart is supposed to be most affected. So we can also call it the brain. And the mind is subtle, Sukshma Sareera. And Chandra Devata is the presiding deity. And then the navel, Nabhi and Apana. The subtle Prana Shakti, whose function is to remove the waste material. Mrityu Devata, Yamadharma Raja. What does he do? He removes the waste material. Man has become old; he is wasting away. And that material has to be removed. And he should be endowed with a new one. So removing the dirt, dust, waste material, which is poisonous – if it continues, it will lead us to death. That is why Mrityu Devata is the presiding deity.

Finally, Sishnam – that is the organ of reproduction. Retaha, that seed, which is a very special type of seed, capable of propagating species. And Apaha, Varuna Devata, Jala Devata is the Devata. Remember, a Devata sustains both the subtle body as well as the physical body. So, these are only a few examples, as I told you. And in the Tattva Bodha, we get – so, I am just giving a sample. Shrotrasya, for the Shrotraha, ears. That is the house. Dig Devata. Shrotra means the power of hearing. Karna is the house. Shrotra is the Indriya. Dig, or space, is the Devata. What does the Shrotra do? That is the ability to get knowledge through hearing. The ability to get knowledge by touch, Sparshagrahana, the ability to distinguish what is called red, white, etc. A beautiful example. How do we know this fruit is ripe? If it is green, usually it is not ripe. By colour itself, we can many of the time know. Or through smell also, we know. So, for the eyes, Chakshasa, Roopagrahana, seeing the forms, size, colours, etc. For the tongue, it is the Vishaya Rasagrahanam, tasting. And for the nostrils, Ashwini Kumaras are the presiding deities. Pranasya Vishaya Gandhagrahana Mithi.

So, we don't need to go into the details. But what is important is that this is the most important point. Why so much enumeration? Simply to remind us, you are thinking about God. You can only think about the world, about the body, about the mind, about our experiences in the mind, about our thoughts. But who is sustaining them? God. In fact, who is manifesting them? God. A manifester is God. A sustainer is God. Without God, nothing happens. The whole body is God. The whole mind is God. That is the point.

So, with that, we have completed the four mantras, the first section of the first chapter of the three chapters of Aitareya Upanishad. We enter now into the second section. Not the second chapter, but the first chapter, the second section. So now, the lokas are created. Lokapalakas are created. So, everything is as if ready. But remember, it is the creation on the universal scale, not on the individual scale. Human beings have not been created. Animals have not been created. Birds, insects, plants, etc., have not been created.

Just now I remembered, I mentioned that I will come to you, that hairs on the sparshendriya, on the organ of touch, sparshendriya, hairs, Raumani. Now, this Raumani, how can they be Devata? But what is the Devata? The Devatas are the Oshade Vanaspati. That is all the plants, all the trees, what we call a plantation. But we are talking about the Virat Purusha. Virat Purusha's Loma is all the plants, etc. Just imagine, our whole earth is the body of the Virat Purusha and all the plants, small, big, flowers, bark, fruits, blossoms, leaves, everything, abundantly growing all over the body of the Mother Earth. Here Mother Earth. And it is because of them, the animals, the insects, the birds, not to speak of the human beings, they are all able to live there. So they are Devatas. What is the definition of a Devata? Without which we cannot live for a second. That is a Devata.

So without Prithvi Devata, Bhu Devata, Anna Devata, nobody can live for a second. Without Jala Devata, nobody can live. Without Agni Devata, nobody can live. Without Vayu Devata, nobody can live. Without Akasha Devata, nobody can live. Now all the other four, the earth, the water, the fire, and the wind, air, we can understand. What is this Akasha Devata? Akasha means, what are you doing? Perhaps you are sitting, perhaps you are leaning, perhaps you are fanning yourself, perhaps you are moving your head here and there. I hope not downward. All these things we are able to do only because of the Akasha Devata. What is Akasha? Space. Space means emptiness. Emptiness means if a chair is empty, a sofa is empty, a cot is empty, a box is empty, a house is empty, then only we can move in, we can sit, we can store. Otherwise, it is impossible. That emptiness is called space.

So we are all able to sit, we are able to keep our chairs, our laptops. Not necessary, a laptop should always be on the lap, only when you are working. Where do you keep? If there is no space, that is why we say, you know what we say? 'Oh, I would like to keep this, but there is no space.' Space means there is no empty place for me to keep. So without Akasha Devata, the Vayu will not be there, because Vayu requires space, Agni requires space, Jala requires space, Earth also requires space, planets require space, the sun, the moon, the stars, all these require space, the meteors require space, everything requires space, every object in this world. And that which sustains everything, that is called Akasha Devata.

Now what is going to come is, gradually the houses have been built, that is, the worlds have come, the Lokapalas have come, and the mould has been prepared, but there must be somebody.

So the Devatas have been asked, 'You go, and all the Devatas, one Devata, for example, you enter into the mouth and you function as speech, and I will sustain you.' It is all there. Now, it is impossible to live without energy. Energy is needed. The provider of the energy is also God only. But at the same time, there must be somebody who is going to supply us energy. All right, God is sustaining us. He says, 'Okay, I myself will come to you in the form of energy.' Everything is there. But what are you going to do? There must be human beings, there must be all the other beings, a living creature, a non-living thing, and everything should be there; then only life goes on. What is life? Experiencing. I must see, I must hear, I must smell, I must taste, I must touch, shabda, sparsha, roopa, rasa, gandha. Otherwise, if there is a dead body, it has all the houses, but there is no dweller. Dweller has disappeared long back. That is not going to work out.

So, here peculiar words are used before going into this first mantra of section 2. I will give you that word. So, what is it? Asana, pipasabhyam, anvaarjat. What is it? Anvaarjat. What is it? Asana means hunger. Pipasa means thirst. We are all familiar. When energy is depleted, we require both food and drink. But here it is taken in a universal sense. What is it? That I want to experience, I want to see through the eye, I want to hear through the ear, I want to smell through the nose, I want to taste through my tongue, I want to touch through my skin. So, asana pipasa is called craving for food. And crave food means what? Experience. Why is this world created? For experiencing. What do we want to experience? First, we experience the body. Then, we experience our mind gradually. And then, we find these experiences of both body and mind are extremely limited. And we are unconsciously aware that we are infinite beings, not finite beings. Whether we know it or not, our every attempt is to become God. 'I want to become infinite. I want to possess everything.' Everybody says, 'I want to possess everything.' And even if one pinch amount is less, I will not be satisfied. I want that also. Because we are infinite, we cannot rest until we are going to become infinite. And for that purpose, life is created so that God wants to sport with Himself. 'Let me pretend I am not full. I am incomplete. I am a lackey, lacking something. I want to acquire everything.' And that is called asana pipasa. But this is what we call this world. For us, what is this world? For us means we don't know who we are. Even though unconsciously, we are aware, consciously we are not aware that we are Brahman. And only there is one Brahman. That is why, I am not aware of it. But I am unconsciously, I want to be Paripoorna. Purnamadah purnamidam purnat purnamudachyate purnasya purnamadaya purnamevavashisyate

So what happened? That Bhagwan, He became divided into Adi-Daivatas, and then Adi-Bhautika, and Adhi-Atmika, and as if He was troubled by hunger and thirst. I told you, hunger and thirst always mean I want to experience the world. I want to be experienced by the world, both. That is why we say, 'I want to love, I want to be loved.' Of course, nobody says, 'I want to eat, I want to be eaten.' Yes, there are other meanings of eaten. That is, when somebody is looking at me with the greatest love, I am being eaten in a loving way.

When somebody listens to my talk lovingly, so he is eating me in the form of hearing. So through every sense organ, we are seeing as eating, listening, hearing is eating, breathing is eating, tasting is eating, touching is eating, everything is there. Do we eat each other by touching? Yes, what are we doing? What are young couples doing? What is the mother doing with the baby? And the baby also clinging, what is she doing? In every way, through every organ, we want to experience everything, and that if we are so long as we are ignorant, that is called samsara. And that is what is going to come. Shankaracharya goes into ecstasy describing the good side of samsara as well as the evil side of samsara so that we are aware samsara is not only a trap, a net, but it is also a doorway to get out. I am going to come to it very shortly today. Let me read the very first mantra of the second section.

ta eta devatah srishta asminmahatyarnave prapatan.h . tamashanapipasabhyamanvavarjat.h . ta enamabruvannayatana.n nah prajanihi yasminpratishthita annamadameti .. 1

These deities, thus created, fell into this great ocean. He, the Creator, subjected the Person (Virat in the form of a lump) to hunger and thirst. They (the deities) said to Him (the Creator): "Find out for us an abode wherein being established we may eat food.

First, I will give you a simple meaning, I will read out the translation.

These Devatas, means Adhishtatru Devatas, etc., they have been created and then they approached the creator and then what he said, 'asminmahatyarnave prapatan,' as if these created Devatas, Adhishtatru Devatas, have fallen as it were into the greatest, biggest, deepest ocean. 'Mahaty Arnava,' Arnava means Samudra, Prapatam. What do you mean by fallen? That means Asana, Pipasa, Abhyam, Anvava, Arjat. As soon as they have been created, they have been possessed by a tremendous sense of hunger and thirst. And again, I remind you, hunger and thirst means we have been created. If you create a car, the car is rearing. When am I going to take my owner? A cycle, an aeroplane, anything. If you have created a Rasagulla, Rasagulla is rearing. When am I going to be consumed? When am I going to become one with my eater? Remember, whatever we have experienced becomes one with us. So, Kshut Pipasa, that means that is the tremendous desire to experience the world. Of course, the Devatas were created only for that purpose. So, now they have been possessed as it were by Asana, hunger, Pipasa, thirst. So, they could not even stand for one second. So, they, Taha, means all the Devatas, Enam, means their creator, Virat Purusha, Abruvan, they went and folded and then they took out what is called a Memorandum, a huge list. 'ayatana.n nah prajanihi ,' give us some houses, staying in which we can enjoy, we can eat, we can drink, we can experience this whole world. 'ayatana.n nah prajanihi ,' you give us. 'yasminpratishthita annam,' and then once we have those houses, houses mean instruments in which to dwell, that means bodies and minds. Bodies and minds, these are the houses. 'Pratishtitaha,' having occupied these houses, 'Annam,' Annam means objective experiences. 'annamadameti,' we may eat our food. What is it? The Eye Devata, it says, 'I am raring to see everything. The Karna Devata, Disha, Space Devata, Akasha Devata, I am raring to hear whatever it is. And the Agni Devata, I am raring to think and speak. And the Chala Devata, I am raring to produce children, etc. And the Rasanendriya, I am raring to experience. This is called annamadameti. May we enjoy Annam. Annam means what?

Swami Vivekananda provides a marvellous explanation. In the Chandogya Upanishad, there is a beautiful mantra that states, "Sattva Sampanna Anna." If anybody consumes Sattvic Ahara, continuous remembrance of God will arise. Some individuals, mostly in South India, are obsessive about restrictions—don't touch this, don't touch that, etc.

Ramanujacharya interprets this as Viveka meaning Sattvic Ahara. However, Swami Vivekananda, following Shankaracharya's definition, asserts that whatever is taken in, Ahriyate Iti, is called Annam. Annam signifies whatever knowledge enters through the sense organs. This interaction with knowledge is essential. Knowledge interacts with knowledge. A Rasagulla, sweet, is a form of knowledge. This is very tasty—knowledge. I enjoyed it—knowledge. I am very happy—knowledge.

To comprehend what I just explained, don't envision a physical entity; it's unnecessary. When dreaming about a sweetmeat and experiencing joy, it's all knowledge. The sweetmeat in the form of knowledge, eating as knowledge, and being judgmental—this is a very nice sweet, it gave me so much happiness—all forms of knowledge only. Some philosophies posit that everything is idealism; there is no realism, only idealism. Everything is an idea. A tree is an idea, a mango is an idea, a sweetmeat is an idea, a tiger is an idea—there is no physical entity. I won't delve into it, but this is the essence.

So, these deities, who are the deities? Themselves only. He created himself, much like how we create ourselves in a dream. Thus created, they fell into this great ocean of samsara. The creator subjected that person, Virat in the form of a lump, to hunger and thirst. Subsequently, Virat, in the form of the residing deities, hurriedly approached the creator, requesting to establish an abode where they could eat food.

The physical body had to be created, and each Devata, for example, Surya Devata entering into the eye, Akasha Devata entering into the ear, etc., as we have discussed elaborately. Now, this is the situation. Something truly wonderful unfolds. Shankaracharya comprehended what samsara is — asana and pipasa — the division where I am the body, I am the living, I am the subject, and these are the objects. I must grasp those objects and experience them. Sometimes I experience negativity, sometimes positivity, and this is called samsara. In the beginning, it will be like that. Slowly, we evolve, and a time will come when we grow tired of this. We say, "This experience paves the way for non-experience. I have been an experiencer for janma janmantara. Now, I don't want to experience it any further. I want to become a non-experiencer." In other words, I want to transcend samsara.

The most crucial point is that samsara is a channel only by going through which we genuinely seek God. The more negative experiences we have, the quicker our desire to escape samsara. This is why God created both pleasure and pain, good and evil, all in dualities — not for enjoyment or experience, but for gaining knowledge and breaking free. First, Shankaracharya, in the Katha Upanishad, shared this insight while commenting on the 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. He went into ecstasy. Here, once more in the Aitareya Upanishad, he experiences ecstasy.

First, I'll read because I cannot restrain myself from acknowledging how marvellously Shankaracharya's language, irrespective of his philosophical views or spirituality, is worth imitating by anybody. His beautiful words are unparalleled, with the exception of Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda. This is a matter for another type of discussion, but I'll proceed to read.

ता एता अग्न्यादयो देवताः लोकपालत्वेन सङ्कल्प्य सृष्टा ईश्वरेण अस्मिन् संसारार्णवे संसारसमुद्रे महति अविद्याकामकर्मप्रभवदुःखोदके तीव्ररोगजरामृत्युमहाग्राहे अनादौ अनन्ते अपारे निरालम्बे विषयेन्द्रियजनितसुखलवलक्षणविश्रामे पञ्चेन्द्रियार्थतृण्मारुतविक्षोभोत्थितानर्थशतमहोर्मौ महारौरवाद्यनेकनिरयगतहाहेत्यादिकूजिताक्रोशनोद्भूतमहारवे सत्यार्जवदानदयाहिंसाशमदमधृत्याद्यात्मगुणपाथेयपूर्णज्ञानोडुपे सत्सङ्गसर्वत्यागमार्गे मोक्षतीरे एतस्मिन् महत्यर्णवे प्रापतन् पतितवत्यः । (Shankaracharya's commentary on 1.2.1)

taa aa aganyaadyo devtaaah lokpaaltven sngklpy sristaa ishvren asmin snsaaraarnve snsaarsmudre mhti avidyaakaamkrmprbhvduahkhodke tivrrogajraamrityumhaagaraahanaadau anntapaare niraalmbe visyendriyjnitsukhlvlksnvishraame pnykendriyaarthtrinmaarutviksobhotthitaanrthshtmhormau mhaaraurvaadyneknirygathaahetyaadikujitaakroshnodbhutmhaarve styaarjvdaandyaahinsaashmdmdhrityaadyaatmgaunpaatheypurnjnyaanodupe stsnggasrvtyaagamaargae mokstire etsmin mhtyrnve praaptn ptitvtyah. (Shankaracharya's commentary on 1.2.1)

I'll provide a small summary. This is the description. Narrating the Samsara Sagara is marvellous. Even by reading it, we can gain some Vairagya. So, what does he say?

"Anadau Anante Apare Niralambe." This means Samsara is beginningless and endless, and it is so deep and Niralamba. Niralamba means there is nothing for us to hold onto once we fall into it, so we drown. That is the meaning of these four letters. And then we try to find some support. Niralamba means no Alamba, no Ashraya, no support. Why? "Anirvachaniyatva Kutratishta Ditya Vyoktam Nashikyate." Because when we are being carried by the urmis, powerful waves, that is tsunamis, and this is what the Gita also says, that we are helpless, being carried. "Naropamashcheha Tathopalabhyate Nanto Nachadher Nachasampratishta." In the 15th chapter, there is no beginning, there is no middle, there is no end, and there is no substratum. What is the form? Because it is infinity. Therefore, Niralamba. And then what are the waters that we are swimming in? Avidya, ignorance. Avidya produces what? Kama. Kama means desires. Desires produce or translate into actions. Actions will be Dharma and Adharma, Punya and Papa, Sukha and Dukha. "Prabhava Dukha Udake." Such deep pain, deep suffering caused by Avidya, Kama, Karma.

And then how do they fructify? Theevra. That is very serious. What? Roga, disease, Kera, old age, Mrutyu, death, Mahagrahe. These are all the crocodiles. All these Roga, Jara, Mrutyu, Mahagrahe. When we are swimming, these crocodiles surround us and try to eat us up. And then we will remember, "Aha! That sweetmeat I have eaten. What a marvellous thing. Do you remember?" And when these crocodiles, "Aha! This beautiful sweetmeat God has given us because He created us also. We prayed also." Overcome by thirst and hunger and He said, "Oh! Don't worry. I am sending these stupid human beings to you, and they will be swimming there, thinking that they will be very happy like that." So sharks, crocodiles, octopuses, whales, and then piranha. It is a small fish, and they will come in thousands, a whole elephant's body in 5-10 seconds, they finish it off. Piranha, all these are there. Where? In that samsara sagara. Are we going to get some rest? Yes, now and then there will be a big wood will be floating, a plank will be floating, and we sit there, and beautiful food is provided. What is that rest? Vishaya Indriya Janita Sukha Lava Lakshana, Vishram. What is that rest? Vishaya Indriya Janita. When we come into contact with a little bit of these Vishaya Indriya, that is objects, sense objects of what we call enjoyment. Sukha Lava Lakshana. Sukha, Lava. How much happiness? Lava. Lava means an infinitesimal part, and that is, we forget everything.

So, once in a while, we get all those things, and then we try to enjoy it. Vishaya Indriy Janita Sukh, Lava. Alpa Sukha. Alpa Vishrama. And then what happens? Samsara, Samudra. What are the waves? Pancha Indriya Arthra Trinan Maruta Vikshobha Utthita Anartha Shatha Maha Urmav. Urmi means tsunamis. What are these? Trina Urmi. Great waves. What are they? Varieties of problems. Vikshobha. And they cause terrible disturbances, worries, depressions, psychiatrists, etc. Trina Trishna Maruta. Trishna means terrible desire. Oh! One drop of honey. I want more and more of this honey. That Trishna. Buddha said, Trishna is the root cause. Trishna or Tanha. He used to call it Tanha. Tanha is the root cause of all our problems. And Trishna for what? Pancha, Indriya, Arthas. The eyes want to see beautiful objects. The ears want to. You are the most marvellous person, beautiful person, generous person. You are God on earth. This is what we want. What do they do? Manmatha, Kama, Krodha, Loba, Moha, Matha, Matsarya. What do they do? Manmathaha. Mathaha means to churn. And manmathaha means what? He or what churns our mind, never giving even one single second's rest. That is called. That is why, again in Bhagavad Gita, Mahasano Mahapapma Vitthiye Vairinam Mahasana, however much you feed, there is no satiation at all. And for the sake of a little bit of happiness, Mahapapma, how much of papa we are creating. So, Pancha, Indriya, Artha, Trishna, Marutam, Anarthashata, and millions and millions of worries, depressions, restlessness of the mind, etc., etc. And in Samsara, what happens? Continuously roaring. How is it roaring? Maha Raurava. Terrible roaring will be there. Even if you go nearer any sea, you will understand what I am talking about. And then, what is there? What is called Aneka Niraya Gata. So many hells are there. People never think. They do a lot of adharmic papa karmas. They fall into them. And once they fall, they do not become unconscious, but they are made to suffer the most indescribable things. Maha Raurava. Aneka Nirata, Niraya Gata, Haa Haa, Iti Adi Kujita, Aakroshno Dhoota, Maha Raurava. This is the description of truth that is coming. I have to tell you, just because I don't see Swarga Loka, I cannot deny. I don't see Naraka Loka, I should not deny.

All this information is derived from the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and Ramakrishna's Gospel. Shankaracharya acknowledges the negativities described and offers a solution. Is there a way out? Can you show something by which I can get out? Yes, there is a raft. What is that raft? It is called Gnana Udupa, a boat called knowledge. Sarvam Gnana Plavenaiva Rujanam Santarishyasi. This is Gnana Udupa, made up of qualities like Sathya, Arjava, Dana, Daya, Ahimsa, Shama, Dama, and Dhriti, encompassing Viveka, Vairagya, Shamadhi Shadguna Sampate, and Mumukshottam. This is the full life boat. Once we gather all these qualities, there is a way out - whether through Bhakti Marga, Gnana Marga, or Yoga Marga. Sathya (Truthfulness), Arjava (Straightforwardness), Dana (Compassion), Daya (Non-Injury), Shama (Mind Control), Dama (Sense Control), Dhriti (Will Power), and Satsanga (Good Company).

Satsangatve nissangatvam

Nissangatve nirmohatvam

Nirmohatve nischalatattvam

Nischalatattve jeevanmuktih

By adopting this raft called Gnana Udupa, the boat of knowledge, one can reach the other shore. Mokshatire Yasyasamsarasamudrasya Mahatannave Prapatan. Tameva Viditva Atimrutyumeti Nanya Pantha Vidyate Ayanaya. The study of the Aitareya Upanishad will continue from the next class onwards.