Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Multi-Theism
I had the opportunity to attend a satsang a few weeks back. The speaker had a wonderful explanation for multi-theistic approach of Sanathana Dharma.
Analogy: You know there is a topline designer wear company which produces clothes in just one size - XL - would you go there and buy your wardrobe on a regular basis? Even if they promise that every stich is made of gold, and that they offer it at the rate of cotton, would you be interested in it? NO, right? Similarly, the multi-theistic approach of Sanathana Dharma is based on the fact that each person admires certain qualities and despises certain facets. If you believe that God is an embodiment of truth, honesty, chivalry etc, then you'd be attracted to Sri Rama. If you believe God to be truly detached from materialism, an impartial person, and full of vairaagya, then Mahadeva or Siva is your God and so on.....
I, till so far, never have heard such a different take on multi theism and was attracted to this and thought I could blog this.
Disclaimer: I haven't read the Deivathin Kural, where I'm sure the 68th Acharya of the Kanchi Mutt would have hinted/spoken something on the same lines.
Analogy: You know there is a topline designer wear company which produces clothes in just one size - XL - would you go there and buy your wardrobe on a regular basis? Even if they promise that every stich is made of gold, and that they offer it at the rate of cotton, would you be interested in it? NO, right? Similarly, the multi-theistic approach of Sanathana Dharma is based on the fact that each person admires certain qualities and despises certain facets. If you believe that God is an embodiment of truth, honesty, chivalry etc, then you'd be attracted to Sri Rama. If you believe God to be truly detached from materialism, an impartial person, and full of vairaagya, then Mahadeva or Siva is your God and so on.....
I, till so far, never have heard such a different take on multi theism and was attracted to this and thought I could blog this.
Disclaimer: I haven't read the Deivathin Kural, where I'm sure the 68th Acharya of the Kanchi Mutt would have hinted/spoken something on the same lines.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Advaita
This is a concept which means that everything in this world is God and so, we ourselves are Gods.
In the words of Sri Chandrasekhara Saraswati of Kanchi Mutt,
"If we are not God, then it means that in this cosmos, there are other things apart from God. Which means, God is another thing among many things. If there are things which are not connected to God which exist, then it indirectly means, God is not a Paramaatma, which is the figurative meaning of God is. If God is supposed an omnipresent, omniscient and omni potent power, then it means we all are a part of the power as well. Thus, the advaities who say that they are brahman are far more humble than people who keep saying (seemingly, humbly) that God is someone much higher than themselves, as the second category of people are meaning that God is among many things, when Advaities accept that God is everything"
The concept of Advaita is what many rational minds also preach. All of us accept that there is some power beyond us - call it luck, God, fluke, fortune whatever. The concept of advaita says that controlling power is GOD and that we are a part of that God. With increasing talks about Power of Positive Thinking and Universal God etc., its incredible that people have thought about this thousands of years ago and have written it in the form of vedas. When recent religions and rational thinkers claim that worshipping idols is irrational and that God is formless, its very surprising to note that people have written the same thing thousands and thousands of years earlier.
Aham brahmasmi is a succinct statement in Sanskrit, which captures the essence of Advaita.
The first person to explicitly consolidate the principles of Advaita Vedanta was Adi Shankaracharya.
Advaita vedānta requires anyone seeking to study advaita vedānta to do so from a Guru (teacher). The Guru must have the following qualities:
1. Śrotriya — must be learned in the Vedic scriptures and sampradaya
2. Brahmaniṣṭha — literally meaning established in Brahman; must have realised the oneness of Brahman in everything and in himself
The seeker must serve the Guru and submit questions with all humility in order to remove all doubts. By doing so, advaita says, the seeker will attain moksha (liberation from the cycle of births and deaths).
The advaita school propounds that any atma can be classified into 3 levels of truth:
* The transcendental or the Pāramārthika level in which Brahman is the only reality and nothing else;
* The pragmatic or the Vyāvahārika level in which both Jiva (living creatures or individual souls) and Ishvara are true; here, the material world is completely true, and,
* The apparent or the Prāthibhāsika level in which even material world reality is actually false, like illusion of a snake over a rope or a dream.
Advaita teachings that the universe is false often confuse people. Adi Shankara says that the world is not true, it is an illusion, but this is because of some logical reasons. Let us first analyse Adi Shankara's definition of Truth, and hence why the world is not considered true.
* Adi Shankara says that whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue. Since the world is created and destroyed, it is not true.
* Truth is the thing which is unchanging. Since the world is changing, it is not true.
* Whatever is independent of space and time is true, and whatever has space and time in itself is untrue.
* Just as one sees dreams in sleep, he sees a kind of super-dream when he is waking. The world is compared to this conscious dream.
* The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman. Superimposition cannot be true.
On the other hand, Adi Shankara claims that the world is not absolutely false. It appears false only when compared to Brahman. In the pragmatic state, the world is completely true—which occurs as long as we are under the influence of Maya. The world cannot be both true and false at the same time; hence Adi Shankara has classified the world as indescribable. The following points suggest that according to Adi Shankara, the world is not false (Adi Shankara himself gave most of the arguments, Sinha, 1993):
* If the world were false, then with the liberation of the first human being, the world would have been annihilated. However, the world continues to exist even if a human attains liberation.
* Adi Shankara believes in Karma, or good actions. This is a feature of this world. So the world cannot be false.
* The Supreme Reality Brahman is the basis of this world. The world is like its reflection. Hence the world cannot be totally false.
* False is something which is ascribed to nonexistent things, like Sky-lotus. The world is a logical thing which is perceived by our senses.
Consider a scientific logic. A pen is placed in front of a mirror. One can see its reflection. To our eyes, the image of the pen is perceived. Now, what should the image be called? It cannot be true, because it is an image. The truth is the pen. It cannot be false, because it is seen by our eyes.
The following sentences, called as Mahavakya (Great Sentences) are:
प्रज्नानम ब्रह्म (Prajñānam brahma) - Supreme Knowledge is Brahman {Aitareya Upanishad, Rig Veda}
अहम ब्रह्मास्मि (Aham brahmāsmi) - I am Brahman {Brihadāranyaka Upanishad, Yajur Veda}
तत्त्त्वमसि (Tattvamasi) - That thou art {Chhandogya Upanishad, Sama Veda}
अयमात्मा ब्रह्म (Ayamātmā brahmā) - This Atman is Brahman {Mandukya Upanishad, Atharva Veda}
Useful Links:
Kanchi Mahaswamigal on Advaita in Deivathin Kural
Puttaparthi Sathya Sai Baba on Aham Brahmasi
In the words of Sri Chandrasekhara Saraswati of Kanchi Mutt,
"If we are not God, then it means that in this cosmos, there are other things apart from God. Which means, God is another thing among many things. If there are things which are not connected to God which exist, then it indirectly means, God is not a Paramaatma, which is the figurative meaning of God is. If God is supposed an omnipresent, omniscient and omni potent power, then it means we all are a part of the power as well. Thus, the advaities who say that they are brahman are far more humble than people who keep saying (seemingly, humbly) that God is someone much higher than themselves, as the second category of people are meaning that God is among many things, when Advaities accept that God is everything"
The concept of Advaita is what many rational minds also preach. All of us accept that there is some power beyond us - call it luck, God, fluke, fortune whatever. The concept of advaita says that controlling power is GOD and that we are a part of that God. With increasing talks about Power of Positive Thinking and Universal God etc., its incredible that people have thought about this thousands of years ago and have written it in the form of vedas. When recent religions and rational thinkers claim that worshipping idols is irrational and that God is formless, its very surprising to note that people have written the same thing thousands and thousands of years earlier.
Aham brahmasmi is a succinct statement in Sanskrit, which captures the essence of Advaita.
The first person to explicitly consolidate the principles of Advaita Vedanta was Adi Shankaracharya.
Advaita vedānta requires anyone seeking to study advaita vedānta to do so from a Guru (teacher). The Guru must have the following qualities:
1. Śrotriya — must be learned in the Vedic scriptures and sampradaya
2. Brahmaniṣṭha — literally meaning established in Brahman; must have realised the oneness of Brahman in everything and in himself
The seeker must serve the Guru and submit questions with all humility in order to remove all doubts. By doing so, advaita says, the seeker will attain moksha (liberation from the cycle of births and deaths).
The advaita school propounds that any atma can be classified into 3 levels of truth:
* The transcendental or the Pāramārthika level in which Brahman is the only reality and nothing else;
* The pragmatic or the Vyāvahārika level in which both Jiva (living creatures or individual souls) and Ishvara are true; here, the material world is completely true, and,
* The apparent or the Prāthibhāsika level in which even material world reality is actually false, like illusion of a snake over a rope or a dream.
Advaita teachings that the universe is false often confuse people. Adi Shankara says that the world is not true, it is an illusion, but this is because of some logical reasons. Let us first analyse Adi Shankara's definition of Truth, and hence why the world is not considered true.
* Adi Shankara says that whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue. Since the world is created and destroyed, it is not true.
* Truth is the thing which is unchanging. Since the world is changing, it is not true.
* Whatever is independent of space and time is true, and whatever has space and time in itself is untrue.
* Just as one sees dreams in sleep, he sees a kind of super-dream when he is waking. The world is compared to this conscious dream.
* The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman. Superimposition cannot be true.
On the other hand, Adi Shankara claims that the world is not absolutely false. It appears false only when compared to Brahman. In the pragmatic state, the world is completely true—which occurs as long as we are under the influence of Maya. The world cannot be both true and false at the same time; hence Adi Shankara has classified the world as indescribable. The following points suggest that according to Adi Shankara, the world is not false (Adi Shankara himself gave most of the arguments, Sinha, 1993):
* If the world were false, then with the liberation of the first human being, the world would have been annihilated. However, the world continues to exist even if a human attains liberation.
* Adi Shankara believes in Karma, or good actions. This is a feature of this world. So the world cannot be false.
* The Supreme Reality Brahman is the basis of this world. The world is like its reflection. Hence the world cannot be totally false.
* False is something which is ascribed to nonexistent things, like Sky-lotus. The world is a logical thing which is perceived by our senses.
Consider a scientific logic. A pen is placed in front of a mirror. One can see its reflection. To our eyes, the image of the pen is perceived. Now, what should the image be called? It cannot be true, because it is an image. The truth is the pen. It cannot be false, because it is seen by our eyes.
The following sentences, called as Mahavakya (Great Sentences) are:
प्रज्नानम ब्रह्म (Prajñānam brahma) - Supreme Knowledge is Brahman {Aitareya Upanishad, Rig Veda}
अहम ब्रह्मास्मि (Aham brahmāsmi) - I am Brahman {Brihadāranyaka Upanishad, Yajur Veda}
तत्त्त्वमसि (Tattvamasi) - That thou art {Chhandogya Upanishad, Sama Veda}
अयमात्मा ब्रह्म (Ayamātmā brahmā) - This Atman is Brahman {Mandukya Upanishad, Atharva Veda}
Useful Links:
Kanchi Mahaswamigal on Advaita in Deivathin Kural
Puttaparthi Sathya Sai Baba on Aham Brahmasi
Introduction
I have created this blog to share thoughts, views, opinions and information on Sanathana Dharma and the concept of Brahman.
I dont intend being racist/casteist. My intention is to let people know more about sanathana dharmam and the concept of brahman - not the born brahman, but one who practices.
Aham Brihmaasi
I dont intend being racist/casteist. My intention is to let people know more about sanathana dharmam and the concept of brahman - not the born brahman, but one who practices.
Aham Brihmaasi
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