OM

Ajnanatimirintasyajnananjanasalakaya

Cakshurunmilitam yena tasmai 

srigurave namah

ADVAITA VEDANTA

D   Krishna Ayyar

Part IIIB
SECTIONS 14 – 23`

PHILOSOPHY OF ADVAITA VEDANTA
AS EXPOUNDED IN THE UPANISHADS

  SECTION 14.  BRAHMAN AS BLISS                 

(1).  Brahman is described as Sat Cit Ananda.  Ananda  is translated in English as Bliss. But the word ananda used to define Brahman’s nature, does not refer to experiential happiness. It should be equated with anantatvam i.e. infinitude – infinitude not only space wise, but time wise and entity-wise – indicated by the word “anantam’ occurring in  the Taittiriya Upanishad mantra II.i – “ Satyam Jnanam Anantam Brahma”. This anantatvam (or poornatvam) is reflected in the pure, calm mind of a Jnani who has identified himself with the infinite  Brahman. And so, he has a sense of utter fulfilment and such a sense, we can say, is supreme happiness. Thus, we have to distinguish between “swaroopa ananda”, ananda as the nature of Brahman and “kosa ananda”, the ananda experienced by a jnani. (The ananda experienced by a jnani is unconditional happiness., i.e., it is not dependent on contact with objects and it has no gradation.; happiness experienced by others is conditional and graded.) The word ananda to define Brahman is used as such in some places in the Upanishads.–Brhadaranyaka Upanishad III.ix.28 (7) –“vijanam anandam Brahma ....parayanam tishtam aanasya tat vida’ (“Knowledge, Bliss, Brahman ......the supreme goal of him who has realised Brahman and is established in It.”- Taittiriya Upanishad III.vi.1 – “anando brahma iti vijanat” (“He knew Bliss as Brahman”). Taittiriya Upanishad II.v.1– “ananda atma”  (“Bliss is Atma” ,i.e., Brahman)  Taittiriya Upanishad II.vii – “ ko hi eva anyat pranat yat  esha akasa  (Brahman) ananda na syat” (“Who indeed will inhale, who will exhale, if this Bliss be not there in the supreme space within the heart) - Taittiriya UpanishadII.iv.1 and II.ix.1 – “anandam bramano vidwan na vibheti kadacaneti - kudascaneti” (“The enlightened man is not afraid of anything after realising that Bliss that is Brahman”)   Chandogya VII.xxiii.1 “yo vai bhooma tat sukham” (“ The Infinite alone is Bliss”). – Brhadaranyaka IV.iii.32 “Esha Brahmalokah....esha  asya parama anandah. Eta anandasya anya bhootani matram upajivati” (“This is the state of Brahman....This is Its supreme bliss. On a particle of this very bliss other beings live.”)  Kathopanishad II.ii.14 refers to Brahman as supreme bliss (“paramam sukham.”) . Kaivalya Upanishad 6 refers to Brahman as consciousness and bliss (“cidanandam “).

(2). The ananda which a Jnani derives from his sense of utter fulfilment or desirelessness is brought out in certain places in the Upanishads. In the “Ananda mimamsa” portion in Taittiriya Upanishad ( Chapter II, Valli 2, anuvaka 8 and in Brhadaranyaka Upanishad mantra IV.iii.33,  it is equated with the absence of desire for the happiness available in the highest world, the plane of Hiranyagarbha,  which is the highest plane  of the vyavaharika satyam. In Taittiriya Upanishad Chapter 2,  Valli 2, anuvaka 7 (mantra 2), the name for Brahman is “ rasah”. “Rasah”, in Sanskrit, in such contexts is the synonym for ananda  . The mantra says, “The One described as Self Created (i.e. Unborn) in the previous mantra, is indeed rasah (ananda swaroopam). Attaining that rasa (identifying himself with that ananda, the Brahman)  the jivatma becomes anandi (enjoys supreme happiness.).

(3). The logic of saying that Brahman’s nature is Ananda is contained in Brhadaranyaka Upanishad in the second chapter, fourth section, fifth Mantra. Here, Yajnavalkya tells Maitreyi, his wife ( who is such an  expert in Vedic lore that she carries on a long and wonderful debate with her husband who is a Jnani) “ Verily the husband is dear ( to the wife ) not for the sake of the husband, my dear, but it is for her own sake that he is dear. Verily the wife is dear ( to the husband) not for the sake of the wife, my dear, but it is for his own sake that she is dear. Verily sons are dear ( to parents) not for the sake of the sons, my dear, but it is for the sake of the parents themselves that they are dear. Verily wealth is dear not for the sake of wealth, my dear, but it is for one’s own sake that it is dear. ……..verily worlds are dear not for the sake of the worlds, my dear, but it is for one’s own sake. Verily gods are dear  not for the sake of gods, my dear, but it is for one’s own sake that they are dear. Verily beings are dear not for the sake of beings, my dear, but it is for one’s own sake that they are dear. Verily all is dear not for the sake of all, my dear, but it is for one’s own sake that all is dear………”    The argument is that everyone ultimately loves only oneself and all other love is only because it subserves the primary love of oneself. And one loves only that which is a source of happiness. So, it is conclued that Atma is the source of happiness and, therefore the nature of Atma is ananda. (Atma is none other than Brahman.)

(4). The nearest example to the ananda aspect of Brahman is our state of deep sleep. Cf. Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.3.xxi  - Just as a man embracing his beloved wife becomes one with her and does not know anything at all, external or internal, so does this Infinite Jivatma fully embraced by the Paramatma does not know anything at all, external or, internal. ‘Being embraced by Paramatma’ is not to be taken literally. When there is no contact with objects and when there is no thought either, in the dormant mind, in that calmness, the ananda aspect of Paramatma as sakshi is reflected. The reflected ananda is not known at that time but it is recollected when the person wakes up. In the next mantra, it is said, “ in this state,  father is no more  father, mother is no more mother, worlds are no more worlds, gods are no more gods, Vedas are no more Vedas”.   ( i.e., all relationships and the consequent samsara are due to the notion of individuality. Since ahamkara is suspended during sushupti, there is no notion of individuality and there is no notion of relationships. There is no notion of means and ends, either. Vedas are means for moksha. There is no idea of wanting to have recourse to Veda.) However, sushupti should not be mistaken to be moksha. Sushpti is only a rough example for the state of liberation. In sushupti, only empirical dealings (vyavahara) are suspended. Avidya is still there.  In the state of liberation, in jivan mukti, empirical dealings are seen as mithya and, in videha mukti, there are no empirical dealings at all. Moreover, in sushupti, there is no awareness of happiness at that time, whereas in jivanmukti, there is unconditional happiness arising out of the sense of poornatvam and in videha mukti one is pure infinite consciousness itself.

Section 16 – Benefit of identification with Brahman

All over the Upanishads, we get statements mentioning the benefit of the knowing, “I am Brahman”. ( Some of the statements have been paraphrased, in the light of  Sankaracarya’s commentaries). Chandogya Upanishad VII. 1. iii – “ I have heard from masters like you that he who knows the Brahman transcends sorrow.”   Taittiriya Upanishad II.i.1 “The knower of Brahman attains Brahman. (“Brahmavid apnoti param”:). Mundaka Upanishad III.2.ix. – “Anyone who knows that supreme Brahman becomes Brahman indeed. ….He  overcomes grief, rises above punya papa; and becoming freed from the knots of the heart (i.e., overcoming self-ignorance), he attains immortality.”  Kathopanishad II.ii.12 –  “Eternal peace consisting in the blissfulness of the Self is for those who recognize the One God (Paramatma) who, because of his inscrutable power makes by His mere existence one form, His own Self that is homogenous  and consists of unalloyed consciousness diverse through the differences in the impure conditions of name and form and who recognise Him as residing in the space of the heart within the body, i..e., as manifested as knowledge in the intellect, like a face appearing to exist in a mirror and have identified with Parmatma., not for others”. Kathopanishad II.ii.13 – “To  those who recognize the Paramatma in their hearts, the eternal among the ephemereal, the indestructible consciousness among the destructible manifestors of consciousness such as the living creatures beginning with Hiranygarbha accrues eternal peace that is their very Self, not for others. (It is due to fire that water etc get the power to burn, similarly, the power to manifest consciousness that is seen in beings is due to the consciousness that is atma.) .  Kathopanishad I.iii.15 – “ One becomes freed from the jaws of death by knowing That (i.e.,Brahnan) which is soundless, colourless,  undiminishing, and also tasteless, eternal, odourless, without beginning, and without end, distinct from mahat, and ever constant.”   Taittiriya Upanishad II.vii – “whenever an aspirant gets  established in this unperceivable, bodiless, inexpressible, and unsupported Brahman, he reaches the state of fearlessness.”  Svetasvatara Upanishad II.14. –“Knowing the Atma, one becomes nondual, fulfilled and free of sorrow.”  Svesvatara Upanishad II.15 – “when one knows Brahman as Atma, i.e., knows “I am Brahman” (“the original consciousness in me is the infinite Brahman”), the Brahman which is unborn,   whose nature is immutable, which is unaffected by avidya and its products and which is effulgent, one becomes freed from all bonds.”  Svesvatara Upanishad III.7 – “Knowing that Brahman that is beyond the universe and Hiranyagarbha and is infinite, that is the indweller of all beings, that encompasses the universe, men become immortal.”  Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.23 -“This ( Brahman described as ‘not this, not this’) is the eternal glory of a knower of Brahman. It neither increases nor decreases through work; therefore one should know the nature of that alone. Knowing it one is not touched by evil action. Therefore he who knows it as such becomes self-controlled, calm, withdrawn into himself, enduring and concentrated and sees the Atma in his own body; he sees all as the Atma. Papa does not overtake him, but he transcends all papa. Papa does not trouble him but he consumes all papa. He becomes free of papa, taintless, free from doubts and a Brahmana ,i.e., knower of Brahman.” Svesvatara Upanishad IV.17 - “Benefited by the teaching that negates the Universe and  discriminates between atma and anatma and reveals the unity of Jivatma and Brahman, he who knows that Brahman becomes immortal.”  Taittiriya Upanishad II.ix.1 - _ “He who knows ananda that is Brahman has no fear.” _ Taittiriya Upanishad II.1.i.  – “Brahman is Existence-Consciousness-Infinity; he who knows that Brahman as existing in the cave-like space of the heart (i/e., mind) (i.e., as the consciousness behind one’s own mind) and thus having identified himself with that infinite Brahman, enjoys, simultaneously, all the desirable things.” (“Simultaneous enjoyment of all desirable things” implies sarvatmabhava.) Mundaka III.i.3 – “ When the seeker recognizes the effulgent Sakshi as the all pervading Brahman, who, in the form of Iswara, is the creator of the universe, becomes free from punya papa, becomes taintless and attains total identity with Brahman.” Mundaka Upanishad II.i.10 – “He who knows this supremely immortal Brahman as existing in the heart destroys, here, the knot of ignorance.” Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.12 – “ If a man knows Atma (Brahman) as “I am this” then desiring what and for whose sake will be suffer when the body is afflicted?” Sankaracarya’s commentary – “ If a man.....knows the atma which is his own atma as well as the Paramatma – knows how? – as ‘I am this Paramatma’, the sakshi of perceptions of all beings, which has been described as ‘not this, not this’ and so on, than which there is no seer.........knower and is in all beings, and which is by nature eternal, pure consciousness and free,  desiring what other thing distinct from his own Self which is everything and for whose sake, i.e., for the need of what other person distinct from himself will he become miserable when mithya body is afflicted? Because he as the atma has nothing to wish for, and there is none other than himself for whose sake he may wish it, he being the atma of all, therefore desiring what and for whose sake will he suffer when the body is afflicted?. For, this is possible for the man who identifies himself with anatma (that which is not atma, i.e. the body mind complex) and desires things other than atma and struggles and desires something for himself, something else for his son, and a third thing for his wife and so on, goes round the births and deaths and is diseased  when his body is diseased. Bur all this is impossible for the man who sees everything as his atma.”  “If a man knows  the Atma as Brahman, then desiring what and for whose sake will he suffer when the body is afflicted? “(Since he, as Brahman, is the Atma in all beings, there is no other seer than he and there is no other knower than he; as Atma, he has nothing to wish for and Atma being all, there is none other than himself for whose sake he may wish anything).  Kathopanishad II.ii.11 – “ Just as the sun which is the eye of the world is not tainted by the ocular and external defects, similarly the Atma that is one in all beings is not tainted by the sorrows of the world, it being transcendental.” ( it is through avidya superimposed on Atma and, consequently, by superimposing false notions of karma, karta and karmaphalam, like the superimposition of snake on rope, that people suffer the sorrows arising from  desire and work and experience the misery of birth, death etc.)  Prasna Upanishad IV.10 – “He who realizes that shadowless, pure, immutable attains the supreme immutable itself.” Kaivalya Upanishad 4 – “Through a life of renunciation, the pure minded seekers clearly grasp the meaning of Vedantic teaching. Having become one with the Infinite Brahman (while living), all those seekers get totally resolved into Brahman at the time of final death.” ( “Vedanta vijnana suniscitartha sanyasa yogat yataya suddhatatva; te brahmalokeshu parantakale paramrutah parimucyanti sarve.” Kaivalya 9 –“He alone is everything which was in the past , which is in the present and which will be in the future and He alone is eternal. Having recognised Him, one crosses immortality. There is no other means for liberation. Kaivalya Upanishad 23 – “ Thus having recognised  the nature of Paramatma which is manifest in the mind , which is partless, non-dual, the wines of all, distinct from cause and effect and is pure, one attains the nature of Paramatma.”.  Brhadaranyaka Upanishad I.iv.2 – “From a second entity only fear arises.” (.The gist is that the jnaani has the advantage of fearlessness, in that nothing in the world which is mithya can disturb him who is the satya atma. Since everything is in essence atma and everything is superimposed on atma and since it is the atma caitanyam that is reflected  in everybody’s antahkarana, and in this sense since everyone’s enjoyment can, intellectually, be regarded as his own, the jnaani has a sense of having attained all desires and hence has no desire for anything and is free to enjoy the ananda arising from the sense of utter fulfillment.)

 Section 17 – benefit of knowing that i  am all

“Sarvatmabhava” is not different from the realisation, “ Brahmasatyam jaganmithya”. “The existence part of everything is Brahman and I am Brahman. In this sense everything is myself.  Since everything is myself, I have no sense of lacking anything. So I am without desire. Since all cidabhasas are reflections of my original consciousness, I can regard, as  a matter of intellectual attitude, all glories and all happiness as my glory and happiness. At the same time, there is the understanding that the nama roopas superimposed on the Existence-Consciousness-Infinity which is myself, are of a lesser order of reality and I cannot be disturbed by any untoward phenomena.  This is the position of one who has known ‘aham brahmasmi”. Isavasya Upanishad 6 – “He who sees all beings in the Atma and Atma in all beings feels no hatred.” (“yastu sarvaani bhootani atmani eva anupasyanti sarvabhooteshu ca atmaanam tato na vijupsate.”) Isavasya Upanishad 7 – “When one understands all beings to be his own Atma, for that seer of oneness what sorrow can there be?”  (“yasmin sarvaani bhootani atma eva abhoot vijanatah tatra ko moha kah sokah ekatvam anupasyata”). Kaivalya Upanishad 10 - “Clearly recognising oneself to be present in all beings and clearly recognising all beings in oneself, the seeker attains the supreme Brahman; not by any other means”. (“Sarva bhotastam atmaanam sarva bhootani ca aatmani sampasyan paramaam yaati na anyena hetuna”). . Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iii.21 – “That is his form (The identity with all is his form); it is the form of atma in which all objects of desire have been attained;  hence there is no desire. Desireless, he abides in the atma.” (“Tat vaa asya etat aaptakaamam aatmakaamam akaamam roopam.” Chandogya Upanishad  VII.xxiv.2 – “The atma is indeed below, the atma is above, the atma is behind, the atma is in the south, the atma is in the north, the atma  indeed is all this. Anyone who sees thus, reflects thus, understands thus, revels in the atma, disports in the atma, has union in the atma, has joy in the atma. He becomes a sovereign. He has freedom of movement in all the worlds’ (“……..,Evam pasyan evam manvaana evan  vijnaanan aatmaratih atamakridah aatmamithunah aatmaanandah sa swarat bhavati tasya sarvaeshu lokeshu kaamacaarah bhavati”. Since everybody is himself, he loves all equally and he has no jealousy or hatred towards anybody or fear of anything or anybody. He goes on teaching or working for the welfare of society peacefully and happily. In this connection, we can usefully refer to Brhadaranyaka Upanishad II.4.vi. “ The Brahmana rejects him who knows the Brahmana to be different from the Self. The Kshatriya rejects him who knows the Kshatriya to be different from the Self. Worlds reject him who knows the worlds to be different from the Self. The gods reject him who knows the gods to be different from the Self. Beings reject him who knows beings to be different from the Self. All reject him who knows all to be different from the Self. This Brahmana, this Kshatriya, these worlds, these gods, these beings and this all are only the Self (one’s own atma)” 

SECTION 18 –  KARMA IS NOT MANS OF LIBERATION. KNOWLEDGE OF IDENTITY WITH BRAHMAN IS THE ONLY MEANS OF LIBERATION.

. Upanishadic statements to this effect are as follows:- .

(1). Kaivalya Upanishad 3 – “It is through renunciation that a few seekers have attained immortality – not through rituals, not through progeny, not through wealth.....”   (“ na karmana na prajaya na dhanena tyaganaike amrutatvamanasuh”). Mundaka Upanishad I. 7 “ ....Indeed those who consider karma to be a means for moksha are fools. They enter old age and death again and again.” Mundakopanishad  I.9 – “.....These ritualists do not know the glory of moksha due to their attachment. Consequently these wretched ones fall down when the Punya is exhausted.” Kenopanishad II.4 – “Through knowledge is attained immortality” “ (...vidyaya vindate amrutam”). Also cf. Nrsimhapurvatapani Upanishad I.6. Cf. Brhdaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.19 – “ Brahman has to be recognised by the mind alone. ( “manasa eva anudrashtavyah”.) “ “ Taittiriya Upanishad II.2.1 – “The knower of Brahman attains Brahman” (“Brahmavid apnoti param”)    “The knower of Brahman  becomes immortal.”  Kathopanishad II.iii.8 – “ Superior to the Unmanifested (Maya) is the Infinite who is......without worldly attributes, knowing Whom a man becomes freed and attains immortality.”  (“....Yam jnatva mucyate jantuh..”).   Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.17 –  “....that very Atma I regard as Brahman. Knowing Brahman, I am immortal.”   (“Tam eva manya atmanam vidwan brahma amrutah amrutam.) Svetasvatara Upanishad III.8 -  “ Knowing that Paramatma that is Pratyagatma, Sakshi, that is  the infinite, that is all pervading, that is effulgent........men become immortal. For attaining this Brahman, there is no other means” (“.......na anya pantha vidyate ayanaya.”).  Kaivalya Upanishad  9 - “He alone is everything which is in the past, which is in the present and which will be in the future. Having known him one crosses mortality.  There is no other means for liberation.” (“..... na anya pantha vimuktaye”). Kaivalya Upanishad 10 –   “Clearly recognising oneself to be present in all beings and clearly recognising all beings in oneself, the seeker attains the Supreme Brahman, not by any other means”). (.....na anyena hetuna”).   Brhadaranyaka Upanishad III.viii.10 – “ He...who in this world, without knowing this Immutable, offers oblations in the fire, performs sacrifices and undergoes austerities even for many thousand years, finds all such acts but perishable; he, O Gargi, who departs from this world without knowing this Immutable, is miserable. But he, O Gargi, who departs from this world after knowing this Immutable, is a knower of Brahman”. The same idea is expressed in  different words in Brhadaranyaka Upanishad I.iv.10 . That knowledge is the means of moksha is also said in Svetasvatara Upanishad I.11, Nrsimhapurvatapani Upanishad II.6   (tam eva vidwan amrutam iha bhavati”) Svetasvatara Upanishad VI.17, Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.14, Chandogya Upanishad VII.1.3,, Mundaka Upanishad II.i.2 , II.ii.8,  III.ii.8 and III.ii.9,  Prasna Upanishad IV.10 and VI.6 Isavasya Upanishad 7, Kena Upanishad II.5, and IV.9 (read with IV.7) , Svetasvatara Upanishad II.14,  ,III,7, IV.17, and V.6, Kathopanishad II.ii.13, Isavasya Upanishad 11 etc.

(Many philosophers, including even some exponents of Advaita Vedanta and yoga sastra talk of an accomplishment beyond knowledge or a mystic experience or nirvikalpa samadhi in which the mind is stilled (manonaasa takes place) as the ultimate means to realize Brahman. Visishtadvaita and dwaitam philosophers talk of bhakti as the ultimate means of liberation. But Sastra itself says that knowledge of Brahman is the only means of liberation  - vide Kenopanishad ‘It has to be recognized only by the mind’ (manasaa eva anudrashtavyah).. Svetasvatara Upanishad III.8 -  “ Knowing that Paramatma that is Pratyagatma, Sakshi, that is  the infinite, that is all pervading, that is effulgent........men become immortal. For attaining this Brahman, there is no other means” (“.......na anya pantha vidyate ayanaya.”).  Kaivalya Upanishad  9 - “He alone is everything which is in the past, which is in the present and which will be in the future. Having known him one crosses mortality.  There is no other means for liberation.” (“..... na anya pantha vimuktaye”).  Mind is the only instrument available to man to gain knowledge. If the mind is stilled, no knowledge, not to speak of knowledge of Brahman, is possible. . 

 SECTION 19.     Liberation  in this life itself – Jivanmukti

There is more than one place in the Upanishads where there is a clear indication that it is possible to be liberated from sansara in this very life. Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.6 – “Being but Brahman he becomes merged in Brahman.” ( This refers to jivanmukti followed by videhamukti. Videha mukti is the disintegration of the karana and sukshma sarira when the death of jnani’s sthoola sarira takes place.) Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.14 – “Being in this very body we have somehow known that Brahman…….Those who know It become immortal,” Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.iv.7 – “When all the desires that dwell in his mind are gone, he……….becomes immortal and attains Brahman in this very body. Just as the slough of a snake is cast off and lies in the any-hill, so does this body lie.” In the commentary on Brhadaranyaka Upanishad I.iv.10, citing Rg. Veda IV.xxvi.1, Sankaracarya points out that Vamadeva, while talking of his sarvatmabhava as a result of his knowledge of identity with Brahman uses the present participle, ‘while realising’; present participle is used only when the action indicated by the present participle and the action indicated by the main verb are simultaneous. Nrsimhapurvatapani Upanishad II.6 talks of the knower of Brahman becoming immortal , here itself. In Kathopanishad 2.3.14, it is said, “ when all desires clinging to one's heart fall off, then a mortal becomes immortal (and he) attains Brahman here (i.e. even when he is living.” In 2.3.15, it is said “when all knots of the heart are destroyed, then a man becomes immortal and attains Brahman here ( even when he is living).” Mundaka Upanishad 3.2.5 and 3.26 cited earlier also indicate Jivanmukti.

SECTION 20. Videhamukti 

Brhadaranyaka Upanishad IV.4.vi – “ Regarding this there is this Mantra verse: ‘Being attached, the (transmigrating self ) together with its karma attains that on which its subtle body or mind is set. It experiences (in the other world) the karma phalam for whatever karma it had done in this world. When it is exhausted, it comes again from that world to this world for new  karma.  Thus does the man with craving (transmigrate). But of a man who has no craving – who is without desires, whose actions and thoughts are without desire,  who is fulfilled and  whose only desire is Brahman ,  (to put it more clearly, of him who knows that he is Brahman), his prana, i.e., his sukshma sarira does not go out (to enter another body). (Ever) being Brahman Itself, he is merged in Brahman.”     Cf. also Prasna Upanishad VI.5 and Brhadaranyaka Upanishad III.ii.11. Mundaka Upanishad III.ii.7 specifies that the prana, sense organs and the ahamkaara of a jivan mukta return to their source, Hiranyagarbha and the other presiding deities.

Section 21 – Purpose of teaching about Gods with attributes

(1). Hindu philosophy is not polytheism; it is not even mono-theism. The absolute reality of Advaita Vedanta is not even a single personal god, not to speak of many gods.   It is pure existence, i.e., an eternal all pervading presence without form and without attributes which is also pure consciousness; with that as the substratum, there is, as a lower order of reality, a superimposition of manifold forms which  together appear to us as concrete objects.  While maintaining that on the paramarthika plane (i.e. as the absolute reality), there is only the nondual atrributeless Brahman (“nirguna Brahman”) Advaita Vedanta accommodates, on the vyavaharika plane, (as a lower order of reality), Brahman with qualities (“saguna Brahman”). Uncreated saguna Brahman is called Iswara. “Uncreated” means, that, on the vyavaharika plane, Iswara is always there, without beginning or end. Iswara is omniscient ( “sarvajnah”), omnipotent  (“sarvasaktiman”) and omnipresent ( “sarvagatah”). Controlled by and as aspects of Iswara, on the vyavaharika plane, as part of the nama roopas, Hindu religion talks of various deities performing specific functions relating to and presiding over various aspects of the cosmos with various powers of Iswara. Thus various aspects of cosmos are personified as gods, such as Brahmaa (pronounced with an elongated ‘a’ to distinguish from the sartyam jnanam anantam Brahman) (otherwise called Hiranyagarbha), Vishnu and Siva, presiding over the creation, sustenance and dissolution of the universe, respectively. There are other personifications  like  Indra (the presiding deity of thunder and lightning), Agni (the presiding deity of fire and the sense organ of sight and speech),  Varuna ( the presiding deity of  water and smell), Vayu  (the presiding deity of air and breathing) etc.    Incarnations of Iswara, (called “avataras”) like Rama, Krishna etc. are also accepted as phenomena on the vyavaharika plane. Avataras are Iswara descending in various worlds in various forms and with various manifestations of his powers on critical occasions when restoration of cosmic harmony is called for. The bodies and minds of avataras are also mithya (vyvahaarika satyam.) It is made clear in certain Upanishads that there is only one absolute reality; that is called Brahman, and gods are only manifestations - nama roopas – on the vyavaharika plane.  Mahanarayana Upanishad III.12, talking of Brahman, says that He (Brahman) is Brahmaa (‘a’ elongated ), Siva and Indra.  Mairi Upanishad 4.5-6) says “devas like agni, vayu and surya are but the body of Brahman”.In Brhadaranyaka Upanishad III.ix.1 to 9,  in the dialogue between Vidagadha and Yajnavalkya, read with Brhadaranyaka Upanishad III.ix.xxvi, it is made clear that the various gods mentioned in Vedas , like Vasus, Rudras, Adityas, Indra, Prajapati, Hiranyagarbha are only manifestations  of the one absolute non-dual, attributeless Brahman.  To the question, “how many gods are there”, the answer starts with 3003 and comes down, step by step to 33, to 6, to 3, to 2, to 1 1/2 and finally to one To the question “Which is that one God?, the answer is “It is Brahman”. That gods are only nama roopas and the reality is only Brahma caitanyam is brought out in the story in Kenpopnishad where the gods think that what was the victory of god is their glory. To curbdisabuse them of this false idea, Brahman  appears as a Yakshha. The gods could not make out what it was. One god after another is sent by Indra to find out. Agni goes; the yaksha asks “What power is  there in you”.Agni says “Ican burn up all this than is there on the earth”. The Yaksha places a straw in front of Agni. Agni is not able to burnit. Similarly Vayu foes; Vayu is unable to blow the straw away. Then Indra himself goes; when Indra approaches, the Yaksha vanishes. Then Uma appears; Indra asks “What is the yaksha that appeared and vanished?”. Uma tells him “It was Brahman”. He long and short of it is that the essence of everything, even of the gods is Brahma caitanyam. But for Brahma caitanyam, gods are also inert.  Svetasvatara Upanishad VI. 7 – “He is the ruler of all the rulers; he is the god of all gods…”   Mundaka Upanishad    II. I. 7– “From him take their origin the numerous gods, the heavenly beings……..”    Kaivalya Upanishad 8 - “ He (Brahman) is Brahmaa, he is Siva, he is Indra, He is the imperishable, the supreme majesty, the self-effulgent; He is Vishnu, he is prana, He is time, He is fire, He is the moon.” – Aitereya Upanishad  III.i.3  –  “This one that is essentially consciousness is Brahmaa (‘a’ with elongated a); he is Indra, he is Prajapati, he is all these gods. And he is  the five elements – earth, air, space, water, and fire – and he is all the beings in subtle seed form and all beings born from eggs, wombs, sweat,  and the soil, horses, cattle, elephants and  human beings. Including all these, whatever there is in this universe, flying beings, those moving on the ground, those that are immoveable – have their existence only in consciousness and everything is functioning in their own field of work or role only by getting the requisite power and knowledge only from that consciousness. That consciousness is the substratum of everything. (Consciousness is the one reality in which all phenomenal things end, just as the superimposed snake ends in its base, the rope, on the dawn of knowledge.)   That consciousness is Brahman.” Taittiriya Upanishad 1.5.1 – “The gods are the limbs of Brahman”. Svewasvatara Upanishad 4. 8 – ’All Gods are superimposed on Brahman, “ 4. 12 –  “ Gods are created by the omniscient Creator”.  4.13 -“The creator is the master of the gods”.4.17 – “The gods are united in Brahman or Iswara, i.e. they are non-different from Brahman or Iswara, From all this, it is clear that the various gods like Indra, Varuna etc. are merely aspects of the one Iswara and the personification is a symbolic way of expressing Iswara’s powers and functions; the personification is meant for meditation. Iswara himself is mithya. The sole reality is Brahman which is nothing but pure existence-consciousness.   . Moreover, even these personifications as Gods,  according to Sastra, these so called gods,  apart from Iswara, the gods like Hiranyagarbha, Indra, Varuna, Agni, Vayu, Surya, Candra etc are only exalted jivas, i.e., those whose prarabdha karma is so  punya-predominant that they deserve to enjoy life in the higher worlds for certain periods; when the period is over they take rebirth on the earth or lower worlds, depending on the punya-papa proportion of the prarabdha karma assigned for that particular janma., unless they attain knowledge of identity with Brahman while they are there in the other world.

(2). On analysis, it will be seen that since nirguna Brahman cannot be object of worship, the purpose of teaching saguna Brahman is only to enable man to go through worship and meditation of saguna Brahman and graduate to jnana yoga (study of Upanishads) and gain knowledge of nirguna Braahman. Cf. Sankaracarya’s statement “citta avatara upaya matratvena”. Saguna Brahman and the various presiding deities and avataras are unreal. A jnani has no need of saguna Brahman worship or saguna Brahman meditation, but, as an example to those in the lower stages of spiritual progress, he may do saguna Brahman worship and saguna Brahman meditation. In this, a jnani who has gained knowledge through the teaching of Advaita Vedanta does not make any distinction between gods of one religion and another. He can accept Jesus and Mohamed as he does Rama and Krishna as avataras of Iswara, appearing in the vyavaharika plane and he can happily worship in a church or a mosque as he does in a temple. The idea is that, in religion, meant as the teaching of preparatory, purificatory disciplines that qualify a seeker of liberation for jnana kanda, there can be many paths.  But when it comes to philosophy, the Advaita Vedanta follower will adhere to his faith that the sole reality is nirguna Brahman, the Existence-Consciousness –Infinity and  ultimate  means of liberation is only one and that is tidentification with nirguna Brahman. (jivahbrahma aikyam). The jnani may also do worship in a temple or pray to god, but he does so with the knowledge that it is not he but the mithya sarira  and the mithya antahkarna that are doing the worship and any God  he pays to, with the idol as a symbol in front, is only  the representative of Brahman...

Section 23.   - Process of obtaining knowledge of identity with Brahman

The sadhana  or process for obtaining the knowledge “ I am Brahman” consists of “ sravanam”, , “ mananam” and  “nididhyasanam”. Cf. the passage in Brhadaranyaka    Upanishad II.4.5 – “atma vai are drashtavyah srotavyah nididhysasitivyah.”.   

 a) Sravanam is study of sastra by listening to the teaching of a competent teacher  who can interpret the scripture properly, i.e., a teacher belonging to the teacher-student lineage of Vedantic teaching – the guru sishya parampara.  Upanishads are full of seeming contradictions and obscurities. The problem is that any part of the upanishadic lore can be subjected to harmonious interpretation only by a  person who knows the whole; since no student will know the whole until he reaches the end of his study, studying by oneself will only lead to misconceptions. Also, seeming contradictions and obscure portions can be clarified only through study of commentaries that analyse the purport of the passages in accordance with the rules of harmonious construction called mimamsa. There are countless commentaries and sub-commentaries and explanatory works and there are works containing arguments and counterarguments among philosophers of different schools of thought and only a teacher who has himself studied under a competent teacher in a course covering the original works, the commentaries and important prakarana granthas and works of disputations can convey the purport and meaning of Upanishadic passages. An ideal teacher is defined  as “ strotriya brahmanishta” i.e., one who has himself learnt under a competent teacher belonging to the guru sishya parampara and has also got the clear and fully assimilated knowledge that he is Brahman. The idea is that unless he himself has learnt under a competent teacher how can he teach and unless he himself knows without any mental reservation that he is Brahman (“aham bramasmi)  how can he tell the student sincerely, “Thou art That”   (“Tattvamasi”)? The mahavakya, “Tattvamasi” (which means “You are Brahman”) should ring true in the student’s ears when uttered by the teacher. Since one cannot know whether the teacher one has approached is a jnaani, (the difficulty  is that only a jnani himself knows whether he is a jnani, there being no valid external signs to indicate whether one is a jnani.),  the best thing is to make sure that the teacher is at least  one who has himself  learnt under a  teacher of the guru-sishya paramparaq ( i.e., a srotriya).

b) Mananam is the process of getting doubts arising in the course of the study clarified by one’s own cogitation and by discussion with the teacher.

c) Even after Mananam has eradicated intellectual doubts; the habit of emotional identification with the body mind complex acquired through the countless past janmas may remain.  Nididhyasanam is meant for the destruction of this habit. It is of no use if one part of the mind is saying, (attributing reality to them) “ I am Brahman” while other parts are really saying, “i am a miserable, limited individual”  “ I am a husband”, “I am a father”, “This is my house” “ I am afraid I will die” “ I want to go to heaven (‘swarga’)” etc. To remove these notions which are related to the wrong identification with the body mind complex ( called, “dehatmabhava”) one has to dwell on the various important aspects of the teaching, such as, “ I am the infinite Brahman”, “ I, Brahman am relationless (‘ asanga’); “ I am the Existence-Conscious-Infinity”  “Wife, children etc. are are all nama roopas superimposed on me, the Brahman. Since, in this janma, this particular nama roopa of a body has married that nama roopa called wife and given birth to certain other nama roopas called children, this nama roopa has to discharge its duties to those nama roopas but there is no place for sorrow, worry or anxiety.”  “ I am the immortal, changeless Brahman; where is the question of any fear of death or any grief worry or anxiety?”  “Brahman is everything and everybody; I am Brahman. So what do I lack? Where is the question of desire for anything? Where is the question of hatred toward anything or anybody? I may have preferences, but I have no needs.” Ultimately, the entire mind has to be saturated with the knowledge “ I am Brahman” and even while experiencing things, transacting with persons and handling situations in the world , the “ I am Brahman” thought should be running as a constant undercurrent in the mind and should surface immediately if there is the slightest tendency of intrusion of any notion related to dehatmabhava (identification with the body mind complex).