Mandukya Karika Lecture 153 on 08-May-2024

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

In our last class, we have completed the Mandukya Karika, the 100th shloka. Then we have started three verses Shankaracharya was offering to Gaudapadacharya because he is a grand guru and Shankaracharya is a grand disciple. Both in the sense of grand and also disciple's disciple or guru's guru. And in the 100th one, you can say, very essence of this entire, not only Mandukya Upanishad, but all the 100 karikas, 215 karikas actually. Having realized that supreme knowledge of the supreme reality and which is extremely difficult to be grasped, is profound, worthless, always the same, all light and free from multiplicity. We salute this great reality and as well as teaching as best as we can. What can we say when a devotee completely surrenders himself to God? What can he do? That is why Ramanuja said so beautifully, With the greatest humility, I have been able to surrender myself to you. Even this very act of surrender is thy profound grace. That is, then I will live, if I have to live, as long as I live, with this firm knowledge that everything is possible only by your grace. With this, the Mandukya Upanishad and karikas are over. And the great Shankara had written one of the most profound commentaries upon the commentary of Gaudapada. What Gaudapada had given in 215 verses, karikas, is not a commentary. The English word commentary in Sanskrit is called Bhashya. So, what is the difference between Bhashya and Karika? A Bhashya has to explain every word of the Upanishadic mantra or it can be anything else also. For example, if somebody is writing a Bhashya on Patanjali Yoga Sutras, what the Yoga Sutra is talking about, every word they have to take up, then there are certain characteristics. They have to find out what was the previous Sutra and what is the relationship between that Sutra and this present Sutra and what is the relationship between the present Sutra and the coming Sutra. So, there must be a harmony, a unity and every word must be explained and in that particular order and if there are any people who are holding a different opinion and we have to take it into consideration, how do you counter this particular person's opinion. So, that is called Bhashya. Whereas, what Gaudapada had done is simply he had digested the original mantra and trying to express it in his own words, the essence of it. But then sometimes it becomes very funny. The essence supposed to be the essence of the Upanishad becomes even more tough than the Upanishad itself. But remember, let us remember, this Upanishad is not giving like we are holding this public class. In the olden days, that was a completely different system. Only those who are firm believers in either Dvaita or Visishta Dvaita or Advaita, their respective Gurus take it for granted that their question of doubting what I am teaching will not arise. Then what is it? For better clarification, So, maybe earlier Acharyas, Purvacharyas, they have also commented. So, that also is taken into consideration. But at the same time, I am clarifying it. In fact, every Acharya claims that I am not writing anything new, I am not talking anything new. But my Guru and Guru's Parampara, earlier Gurus following this particular belief, Dvaita or Visishta Dvaita, what they have talked about, I am only reminding, trying to put you, because I am present, they are not present, you are present. So, I digest and whatever I understood, I am conveying it to you. But because of certain language, many times I have pointed out. So, Gaudapada Acharya could not help but use very complicated, complex words. And especially, probably he knew thoroughly about the Buddhistic philosophy. So, this is the Gaudapada Karika. But the overall idea is crystal clear. What is the idea? Brahma Satyam Jagan Mithya. Brahman alone is the reality. And this Brahman is never born. And to think that Brahman is born as I, as you, as everything else, is called Mithya. And Gaudapada wants to explain how this Mithyatva is there. We will see about it when we are talking about the summary of this entire Upanishad. But with this, the fourth chapter, Alatashanti Prakarana, consisting of 100 Karikas is over. The first chapter called Agama Prakarana. So, that has only 29, etc., total 215 shlokas. We will come to that soon. And now, having commented upon his Paramgurus Karikas, 215 Karikas, Shankara is offering at the conclusion his own salutations to his Guru's Guru and through that to his Guru also. And we have already started it. I salute, I bow to that Brahman who is the destroyer of all fear of those who take shelter under it. Those who surrender to Brahman. That Brahman, the knowledge of the Brahman makes the destruction of every type of fear. Because fear always comes from the second and this knowledge gives that I am the only one, there is no second. And this Brahman is which, though unborn, appears to be associated with birth through its inscrutable and indescribable power of Maya in the form of knowledge and activity. So, through Maya, Srishti is there. And in the Srishti, there are two classifications. One is with life. With life means with consciousness, with awareness, with knowledge. And another is without life. Existence is there, but Chit and Ananda are absent. So, this creates multiplicity. Every Jiva thinks that there are so many other Jivas are there. This is called multiplicity. And why does this illusion, delusion appear? Because of the power of Maya. It is not our fault. It is only Brahman, as it were, is playing. And the only way it can be described is Leela. Nitya and Leela in Shri Ram Krishna's terminology. Nitya means nobody can talk, nobody can think. There is no need for these Mandukya classes. Leela means we have to go through all these things. That is what is called Leela. And can we understand this Maya? No. It is inscrutable because it exists, it doesn't exist. At the same time, we can't say it is real or it is unreal. It is real because we are experiencing. It is unreal because it is only temporary. And whatever is temporary is called unreal. Unreal means changing. Unreal means dependency is there. So this is the nature of Maya. What does it do? It makes the impossible possible. What is the impossible? It makes the Brahman. As it were, it is Brahman. Atma is made to appear as Anatma. Really, Atma never becomes Anatma. But this Maya's power makes it appear to people as if we are all different from Brahman. And Brahman is born and it grows and it dies. This is called change. That is what happens. So vividha vishaya dharma grahi, which though ever at rest, which means Brahman, though ever at rest, appears to be moving. vividha vishaya grahi. And which though non-dual, appears to have become multifarious object. For whom? For those whose vision is deluded by the perception of endless objects and their attributes. Who is such a person? I, you, everybody else. So that is the meaning of Shankara's salutation. I prostrate. And there are different types of prostrations. Namaskarams are there called pranams. One is you stand up and you fold your hands. This is what we usually do. Another is just bend a little and touch the feet of somebody. That is what also we do generally. But in South India, most important is they fall completely. Ashtanga pranam. So this is what Shankaracharya is telling, I do ashtanga pranam. Why? He is South Indian. Natasmi. Pada patai natasmi. There is a tradition in South India, if a brahmachari or a junior brahmin boy especially meets a senior brahmana or sanyasin, he has to hold his ears with the opposite hands. That is the right hand will be holding the left ear and the left hand is holding the right ear. It is much more effective than each hand holding. And then he has to tell, my gotra is Bharadwaja gotra, Vishwamitra gotra. And then I am saluting you. There is a Sanskrit. This thing is there. Abhivadaiye. And then fall ashtanga pranam. And take care. If anybody does it to you, always carry some chocolates at least. You will have to give something. Otherwise next time he may not do that. So I prostrate to the feet of that great teacher. And what type of teacher? The most adored among the adorable. And who is the most adored? A person who has realized the truth he is talking about. And then he is a jivanmukta who out of sheer compassion for the beings, that is all of us, what type of beings are we? Drowned in the deep ocean of the world. What type of world? Infested with the terrible sharks of incessant births and deaths. Hindus firmly believe, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs in purvajanma and parajanma. Many, many births are there. 84 lakh janma. So we do not know. It is to say, numberless, countless janmas are there. That is what Shankara is referring. Infested, there are terrible sharks. What sharks? What type of sharks? Of being born, living for some time, experiencing sukha and dukha, and health and ill health. And becoming old, called shat-urmi. Six types of waves, one after the other. Not at the same time, but in different ways. And then this is going on and on, one after the other. And then this grace of this Guru rescues for the benefit of all this nectar. How does the Guru rescue a disciple? When the disciple completely surrenders himself at the feet of the teacher, he gives him that nectar, amruta. What is the amruta? The celebrated word amruta. So, kshera, samudra, mathana, all for what? For obtaining the amruta. This story in the Bhagavatam has both an exoteric meaning and esoteric meaning, an external meaning and an inner meaning, bahiyartha, antarartha. So, what is the bahiyartha? Gods and demons. That is, all the thoughts, good and evil thoughts, they are fighting continuously. Just as in our case, our sadhana is nothing but a pure fight in this kurukshetra or karmakshetra, through this body and mind, of this incessant fight between the good and evil, taiva and asura. There is nothing else but that one. But if we pray to God, surrender ourselves, God's grace will come to our side and we will be able to overcome. So, if we can churn this life, which is compared to an ocean, but that ocean is not a visha samudra, it is only a temporary phenomenon. Visha is temporary, amruta is permanent, but that amruta is hidden. So, just as butter, even though it is all over the milk, it has to be churned out, so also this amrutatva, potential divinity, must be manifest. And that is the inner meaning. In the external meaning, Dhanvantari is a guru actually. He comes and gives temporary happiness if we really control our mind. Churning means controlling the mind. So, so many things, good things, bad things can happen. But in the end, the guru comes and he makes a person dharmic and the person becomes happy. But the nature of happiness is after some time, it will guide us, drive us, poke us to move forward higher and higher until we reach the highest and find everything worthless. And then our attention is turned to still higher. That which we are searching outside now becomes an inner search. And that is the Avaruta Chakshuho Amrutatvam Icchan. And that is what is beautifully described in the Upanishad, Vaana Prasthashyama. Then through intensifying sadhana, we enter into that fourth stage where we are capable of surrendering ourselves totally at the feet of the Divine Lord, and then out of His mercy, I will take you out of this as Bhagavan Krishna categorically states in the very charama shloka of the Bhagavad Gita. That is the inner meaning that we have to realize our true nature. Our true nature is Brahman. And so I prostrate completely at the feet of my teacher who out of His infinite grace bestow upon me a nature of self-knowledge or Brahma Jnana. And I know that I have been having what we call a nightmarish dream. I am not what I am. So I thought I was somebody else. I thought I was not at my home but somewhere else. I thought I lost all my people and I was with strangers. I was roaming about in a strange country with strange cloths and a strange type of behavior. But that is only a nightmarish dream. But the Guru awakens And what else? How else can I express my gratitude to that ever-gracious Guru who is none other than Paramatma. And in the end who is none other than my own true Self. I prostrate completely at the lotus feet of my Guru who rescued me. This is the second salutation by Shankara. The third one was यत् पाधो अशेतानाम् शुति शमा विनया प्राप्ति अग्राह्यम् अमोगा तत् पाधो पावनियो भवभय विनुदव् तर्वभावैहि नमस्य। More or less same meaning in different words. I make obeisance, I salute with my whole being. That is the meaning of what is called शाष्टांग प्रदामा means through the body, through my speech, through my mind. These are the three parts of my whole being. To those holy feet. And what type of holy feet? The dispeller of the fear of this chain of births and deaths. That means he who is capable of granting me Mukti. And who is that person? Of my great teacher, who through the light of his illumined reason, is compassionate towards the disciple. He will come down to the level of the disciple. And he will try to make him understand the highest truth in the way the disciple can really understand. That is called illumined reason means it is not Tarkika's reason. Even a person like Sam Harris, who does not believe in God, etc. And we can jolly well live without God. But they use tremendous amount of logical power to convince others. There is a famous person called Sam Harris. And if you search for him on the internet, you will get very easily. So not like that. Illumined reason means illumination comes from the teachings of the Upanishads. But to make those things illumined teachings, make us understand, he uses reason which we can understand. So the teacher, by using this illumined reason, had thrown light upon my buddhi, my understanding, my intellect. And thereby what happens? Because it is illumined, it destroyed the darkness of delusion, which had been enveloping my mind until now. And who destroyed? The Guru who destroyed forever my notions of appearance and disappearance. Appearance means janma, birth. Disappearance means mrityu. In this terrible ocean of innumerable births and deaths. And His grace is not only upon me, but upon all who makes all others also that can take shelter at His feet, yet they also attain to the same unfailing knowledge of scriptures and obtain peace and the state of perfect non-differentiation or advaita. So I salute that Guru. What is the purport of these three? That without the grace of God, it is impossible to know who I am and to become completely free. Mukti is not possible. Liberation is not possible without the grace of God. But how does the grace of God come? It comes in the form of my own Guru. A Guru is nothing but the grace of God assuming a human form. Because I am human, I can only contact or establish a relationship with somebody who is like me. There are of course other types of relationships. We can establish a relationship with a piece of stone, with a dog, with a bird. These are called pets. But that is not going to help us. We have to establish a lasting, eternal relationship with God through the form of a Guru. So Guru and then image of God, Ishta Devata, there is no difference at all. That is why the Guru is necessary. Guru means the correct knowledge, right knowledge. So knowledge can be, three types of knowledge will be there. So one type of knowledge is doubtful knowledge. Another type of knowledge, partial knowledge. Another type of knowledge, completely opposite type of knowledge is there. So all these things we have to, will be destroyed. Right knowledge will be obtained. Guru means the knowledge of the scriptures present to me in the form of a living personality, which alone can help us. So my salutations to that great Guru. These are the three verses. Gaudapada himself salutes that Brahman in the hundredth shloka. Then Shankaracharya also comments upon that. Then adds his own three shlokas to show his eternal gratitude to his Guru because of whose grace he himself had obtained. And by proxy what we mean is we also through our Gurus, only we can obtain. This is the meaning of what Charama Shloka is called in the Bhagavad Gita. That is, without Sharanagati there is no other way. But if some people have some kind of objection to use this word Sharanagati, for them the understanding is that I destroy my individuality, my wrong opinion, and I accept the right understanding and make it my own. That is the meaning of Sharanagati. So with this the Upanishad is over and the Gaudapada Karikas divided into four chapters is over. But we will come to the Shanti Mantra later on. Now I want to revise and go to the very essence because we have taken nearly I think 153 or something like that classes are there. Started practically two or three years back. Now I will go back because it is very good to revise. So there are many Upanishads are there and there is Upanishad called Muktika Upanishad. It only catalogues about 108 Upanishads. But more than 200 Upanishads are available and many of them may not be authentic because there is also a Allah Upanishad and also one more is added several years back. It is called Ramakrishna Upanishad by none other than a great Indian. So Upanishads can be created. Are these false? I don't know about Allah Upanishad. I have never read it. But essentially they are also telling the teachings of Islam also are nothing but Upanishad. In a way it is also true. But what is important for us that the teachings of Sri Rama, Sri Krishna or Chaitanya Mahaprabhu or Sri Ramakrishna, every avatar. Their words are nothing but pure Upanishads. So there are many Upanishads. Of these there are 10. They are called Mukhya Upanishads and they are called Mukhya not because Upanishads classify them as important but because the great Shankaracharya has written commentary upon them and some people of course add also Shweta Shwetra Upanishad which is the 11th one. There is slight doubt. It doesn't make any difference. Somebody must have written just like Shankaracharya in the name of Shankaracharya. But that is also beautiful commentary. All that we need to understand is these commentaries are very good. So these 10 Mukhya Upanishads means those which have been commented by Shankaracharya Isha, Kena, Katha, Prashna, Mundaka, Mandukya, Taitriya, Aitriya, Chandogya and Brihadaranyaka. These are the 10 and if we add Shweta Shwetra which we have done that becomes the 11th. The Mandukya Upanishad belongs to the Atharvana Veda. As we know Vedas are divided into 4 by Veda Vyasa himself. Vyasa means editor, the classifier. So the Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda those were the Vedas earlier at the beginning. Then a great Rishi had come along and his teachings were followed by a very large number of people and he was called Atharvana Rishi. So we were forced to accept his teachings also as the 4th Veda and with that a line is drawn up so that afterwards it is not called Veda it is what you call teachings based upon the Veda. So this Mandukya Upanishad belongs to the Atharvana Veda and see how beautiful. Therefore Atharvana must have been a great person and it is associated with a Rishi called Manduka. Manduka means a frog. So the word Manduka has the meaning of frog and some people call this Upanishad Frog Upanishad because the teaching in this Upanishad makes a very big leap like a frog and Shri Ram Krishna also in his experiences of how Kundalini reaches the Sahasrara from Muladhara to Sahasrara refers to this frog just like frog jumps. So I have experienced that also and this Mandukya Upanishad is a small Upanishad. In fact one of the smallest of the major Upanishads consisting of how many mantras? Only 12. For this Upanishad Gaudapada Acharya has written an analysis called Karika. So as I said Karika is not a commentary but this is an analysis and sometimes he makes it even tougher than the Upanishad itself. Gaudapada is the Guru of Shankaracharya's Guru Who was the Guru of Shankaracharya? Govinda Bhagwatpada and Shankaracharya met this Govinda Bhagwatpada on the banks of the Narmada and the Guru of Govinda Bhagwatpada was called Gaudapada. So at least there must have been 50-60 years difference between Shankara and Gaudapada earlier to Shankara. So usually Shankaracharya's time is accepted though there is a very great controversy and it doesn't matter for us but 8th century 8th century means a century that has gone earlier. That means 700 something. So this Gaudapada's work is called Karikas, Mandukya Karikas and there are 215 Karikas Karikas are there. Karika or we can call it verse also. So Shankara writes a commentary not only on the 12 mantras of the Upanishad but also on the 215 Karikas of his Grand Guru Paramaguru Gaudapadacharya. So these Mandukya Upanishad of 12 mantras plus 215 Karikas are divided into 4 chapters. The first chapter is called Agama Prakarana. What is the meaning of Agama Prakarana means a chapter context. Agama means Shruti, Vedas, Upanishads. So because it contains the Agama Prakarana, first chapter, it contains all the 12 mantras of the Upanishads plus 29 Karikas of Gaudapada trying to explain and then Gaudapada divides these 12 mantras and then he tries to explain. I will come to that very soon. So the second chapter is called Vaithathya Prakarana. Let me go back to the first. First chapter is called Agama Prakarana because Agama means Shruti. Shruti means Upanishad. So because there are 12 mantras are there and so that is called Agama. That is why Upanishad plus a little bit of analysis that is why it is called Agama Prakarana. The second Prakarana is called Vaithathya. So again these chapters are dependent upon the central ideas derived from these 12 mantras. So the Mandukya Upanishad is primarily consisting of two topics. One is called Omkara Vichara. Another is called Atma Vichara. So from first and second, first it says about Omkara, second it says about Atma and incidentally one of the Mahavakyas comes in the second mantra. From mantra 7 onwards is the until 12th practically, it is the analysis of what is the real nature of, this is not Jagrat, this is not Swapna, this is not Sushupti, this is not in between states then what is it? Shantam, Shivam, Advaitam and that is what he wants to find out. So then what are we seeing? We don't see Brahman, we see Brahma. Brahma means don't take it in the extreme sense of delusion. We use that word but here Brahma Gnana means Brahma Gnana not Brahma Gnana. Please do not get confused. Brahma Brahma. Brahma means non-Brahman knowledge Anatma Gnana. So the whole experience that we have, Srishti Stithi Laya or this is what happens, this is called Jagrat, Swapna, Sushupti is equivalent to Srishti Stithi Laya and these are the three experience states only of experience life after life. From the beginning to the end and once we get out of it and that state is called Turiya so the whole experience is divided into these three states and whatever knowledge we think we are getting because we are acting and reacting because of that this Brahma Gnana which is totally dependent upon Turiya Gnana only so that is called Mithya that is why the Jagat is called Mithya. So that is called Brahma Gnana. At this state we the students are not having Brahma Gnana but Brahma Gnana but anything that is mistaken must be based upon something real to mistake if you mistake and see something as a snake even for that snake to be mistaken there must be a real rope. This is a point Swami Vivekananda makes very nicely. So even though we don't have it is not that we don't have Brahma Gnana. We have partial Brahma Gnana in the form of existence, knowledge and some type of happiness and unhappiness but at the same time we have to understand it very clearly that this kind of partial knowledge creates lot of problems I am born that is not a problem but I am growing up that is a big problem. In fact growing up is one of the biggest problem you know why? Because a young man and he joins a company and he goes on getting promotion let us assume that he goes on getting promotion and he comes to the end and then he becomes old and he has to look what did I forget then he is respectfully made redundant and that kind of redundancy is not accepted, acceptable by any person that is called Jar Jar Avastham Vidha Avastham. So growth is ok but certain type of growth is not ok so if somebody is growing cancer that is not ok so body can have, mind can have, ideas can have, fanaticism also can grow, all growths are not welcome so a time will come when we may be experiencing some kind of happiness but always accompanied with unhappiness but we realize that this is not welcome so at that stage Brahma Gnanam, in fact like a mother leads every Jeeva to Brahma Gnanam for many people who do not study Advaita, Brahma is like a demon no no, it is what Sri Ramakrishna calls Avidya so Maya is called Vidya Maya, Vidya Maya many times I am trying to inject into our brains Avidya Maya is not opposed to Vidya Maya it is like nursery school, it is the foundation Akshara Abhyasa so if a person cannot master and remember the alphabet, the entire encyclopedia knowledge is dependent only upon the knowledge of the alphabet but our buddhi, grasping power also has to be so a person can turn to Vidya Maya only by going through Avidya Maya and concretely illustrated this Avidya Maya goes through two stages which will take us as if through difficult situations which is called Brahmachari Ashrama and Grihastha Ashrama but the same Avidya Maya again turns our mind by getting blow after blow we wake up and we turn towards our own self, that is called Vanaprastha Ashrama which gradually takes us to the Sanyasa Ashrama and this is the only way so what is the point? Point is this Brahma Jnanam is not worthless not an enemy as many people try to misunderstand, it is the only foundation, it is God's grace, comes in the form of Avidya Maya don't go on becoming clever and say why can't God simply push us into Vidya Maya without Avidya Maya but anyway I have not been present when he created the universe so this is the invariable process, a baby cannot be pulled to become a mature young man he has to go through kindergarten kindergarten then elementary school nursery school, elementary school middle school, high school and then permanent university, college, etc this is a natural growth so this is the whole world is contemporary, that knowledge comes only when we go through this and that is what Gaudapadacharya wants to analyze in the second chapter called Vaitatya, Tatya means as it is and opposite to it is called Vaitatya that is false what is it? whatever we are experiencing as permanent this body is permanent mind is permanent parents are permanent, children are permanent, no nothing in this world is permanent but in that process we are pointed out, there are there is somebody who is permanent because even the idea of impermanency can be understood only if there is an idea of permanency that is the beauty of it so there is somebody who is permanent who never undergoes any change and that person usually gets mixed up with the impermanent and the body and the mind the whole world is nothing but this identification with body-mind and whatever is experienced through this body-mind, so if we can discriminate and separate the subject from the object then first thing is develop detachment towards the object because we understand this is called Mithya, what is Mithya? Mithya has got two characteristics, first of all it is continuously changing, secondly it is totally dependent upon somebody called subject, so whatever is changing, whatever is cognized depends for its very cognition by somebody else, that is called Mithya but in the end you know what happens so the subject says I am separate from the object that is also part of the spiritual progress but when we obtain the highest progress which is I am Brahman, then what we find is this so called world that is also none other than Brahman then it becomes instead of a fearful object a Leela, a thoroughly enjoyable way of life, Leela and that understanding we must have and that understanding comes to us through the teachings of Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda, this is the contribution of Ramakrishna Krishna, Rama etc. so the second chapter is called Vaithathya means unreal chapter containing 38 Karikas or Shlokas that is the analysis of Gaudapada and it indicates clearly Mithya nature how does he do it? Gaudapada does it in the form of what you call comparison and analysis so when we are in the waking state, we think that is real, when we are in the dream state, that becomes real, waking and dreamless deep sleep becomes unreal, then both become unreal, then we enter into deep sleep, this compare and contrast system is very prominent in this second chapter so the waking state is as real as the dream state which is to say it is not real, just like dream appearance only not reality and that is the essence of the second chapter, the third chapter is called Advaita, then what is the reality? Third chapter is called Advaita Prakaranam that having denied it is not waking, it is not dream, it is not in between etc. ultimately it comes Shantam Shivam Advaitam that Advaita is the highest and that is why the whole third chapter is to establish there is no multiplicity there is only one unity and that is called Advaitam, that is called Brahman and this Gaudapada conveys through 48 karikas dealing with the non-dual nature of Atma then the fourth chapter in a way is called Alatha Shanti Prakaranam, that is the complete extinguishing of the Alatha Alatha means a fire brand, beautiful and it contains 100 karikas and in a way it is also the essence of the earlier three chapters also. So there are a lot of objections that can be raised by other schools of philosophy other philosophers Dvaita, Visishta, Dvaita, Nyaya Vaiseshika, Sankhya, Yoga and Buddhistic schools, they have been refuted and we tried our best to understand it. So what is the essence? Brahma Satyam, Jaganmithya Jivo Brahma Hivanaparaha There are a few more points which we will talk about in our next... May Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti Ramakrishna